Ordinances constitute the laws of the City. They must be passed by the City Council and signed by the Mayor, or passed by the Council over the Mayor's veto. Ordinances also are required to authorize certain actions, as designated in the City Charter. Ordinance files include the text of legislation as well as information on legislative history. All ordinances up to the last two years are available for reference on microfiche.
More recent ordinances are available in paper files.
Since 1946, ordinances of a general, public or permanent nature have been published in an annual Compilation of City Ordinances . The ordinance files include the ordinances of the annexed municipalities, including West Seattle, Ballard, Columbia, Georgetown, South Park, and Southeast Seattle. Cards contain both Council Bill numbers and Ordinance numbers. Card Ordinance Amendments Citations to all subsequent Card Index legislative action which affects an ordinance, including amendment and repeal. Book Record vols.