“Who are these people?” I was recently asked that question as I was leaving a public meeting held by the Puget Sound Regional Council (PSRC) seeking public comment on their recently completed “Vision 2040 People — Prosperity — Planet.”

“Vision 2040 is about the region’s future.” This 100 page “Vision” lays out “policies” that will improve our region’s quality of life, and will balance “…individual rights with the larger needs and values of society.

They’ve taken care of it all — transportation, economic development, land use, environmental justice and social equity. These policies will also protect, “...the sense of place people have come to value” (as long as your sense of place is in a high density urban core).

One of their “Overarching Goals” is to focus growth in urbanized, compact, transit oriented communities, reducing reliance on the automobile and promising rural lands and natural resource lands will be permanently protected. Natural resource lands are defined as agriculture, forest, shorelines and mineral lands.

Even global warming hasn’t been overlooked. PSRC is developing policies to anticipate and mitigate the impacts of climate change. We’ll have fewer automobiles, “greener” homes, “efficient” landscaping — all the better to reduce greenhouse gasses.

PSRC is worried about our well-being. They plan to “Develop the relationship between land use and health” exploring ways to improve our physical, social and mental health. Obesity, depression and premature death are all connected to “the ways we travel.” Their solution is for us to drive less and walk, bicycle and take public transit more. That will make us healthier and happier. We will all be safer since “more driving results in more vehicle-related accidents.”

Who are these people? A whole new layer of regional government — an association of cities, towns, counties, tribes, ports and state agencies that develop regional growth and transportation policies for Snohomish, King, Pierce and Kitsap Counties. They are comprised of three policy boards: Transportation, Economic Development and Growth Management. Membership includes 71 cities, four ports, two state agencies and two tribes.

PSRC staff tells us that they are not a regulatory agency and it is not mandatory for local jurisdictions to adopt their policies. They may not tell you they have a big hammer. PSRC controls millions of dollars in grant money. Jurisdictions that don’t adopt PSRC’s “policies” as regulations, will risk losing grants.

I have attended PSRC’s policy board meetings in Seattle — a process completely driven by staff. PSRC has 85 employees and a $24,500,000 biennial budget. The Growth Management Policy Board members include government officials from all four of the counties; some of the cities, Port of Bremerton, the Suquamish Tribe, the State Office of Community Development, two representatives from business and labor and representatives from the Sierra Club and Futurewise — well known activist organizations committed to controlling how and where we live.

What all these people have in common is a belief that government has all the solutions to life’s problems — large and small. They are entirely focused on their utopian plan, completely convinced that they know what is best for us.

I did not recognize a single member who would stand up for your constitutional rights to life, liberty and property. Many of the members don’t speak at all in the meetings. I’ve wondered if those who remain silent understand what is going on — or perhaps they agree with everything — or worst yet, they disagree but don’t have the political courage to speak up.

Did you ever vote for Dow Constantine? Mr. Constantine is a PSRC member representing King County. He has more to say about the lifestyle imposed on you by our local government than anyone you vote for in Kitsap County.

One of PSRC’s promises to local elected officials is to “Address issues that are difficult to resolve at the individual jurisdiction level.” That means if our local elected officials make a decision or pass a law that is unpopular with the electorate, they can tell us that the “PSRC made us do it,” or “It’s a condition of the grant!” Presto! PSRC absolves them of any “political liability.”

Local governments are losing their autonomy and you will lose your influence and clout as a voter and taxpayer.

How much does the public know about PSRC and their junior partner KRCC (Kitsap Regional Coordinating Council)? PSRC meetings are held in Seattle while you are working. KRCC meetings are 8 a.m. on a Tuesday. After repeated requests to KRCC to video their meetings for broadcasting on our local channel, they still have not done so.

Neither agency is big on public participation. On June 28, the PSRC Executive Board released an e-mail stating that “PSRC’s adopted Public Participation Plan is designed to outline the minimum requirements for public involvement in order to meet federal, state and PSRC bylaw guidelines…” So much for open government.

Citizens need to learn about these powerful agencies and how they “bend” our lives to fit into their social engineering schemes. If you are as concerned as I am, check out the PSRC and KRCC websites and tell your elected officials to step up to the plate and assume the responsibilities they swore to uphold. Tell them you don’t approve of their delegating their sacred duties to these quasi-governmental agencies who are responsible to no one and whose constitutionality is in serious question. Visit them at www.psrc.org and www.kitsapregionalcouncil.org.

(Editor’s Note: Reach Vivian Henderson, Executive Director of the Kitsap Alliance of Property Owners at 360-710-8560 or viviankapo@wavecable.com.).