Tag Archives: taxes

Vote on King County Crisis Care Centers levy shaping up for April

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You can almost sympathize with Seattle property owners. Without more robust revenue at the state level, King County and cities like Seattle are left to fund much needed services and resources through some of the few funding sources they can access. Wednesday morning, the Seattle City Council’s Finance and Housing Committee is hearing a briefing on efforts to create a new “regional network” of emergency mental health care centers with a new property tax levy to power the plan to create the five centers.

“The levy would create behavioral health crisis care centers – somewhere for people to go when they urgently need help – which our region currently lacks,” a council brief sent to media reads.

CHS reported here in September on King County Executive Dow Constantine’s proposal for an April ballot measure that would go into effect in 2024 if approved and would cost the median-value homeowner around an estimated $121 a year for nine years. The levy could raise as much as $1.25 billion through 2032 to fund construction of the five crisis care centers and increase services in the county.

In Wednesday’s presentation (PDF) from county Department of Community and Human Services director Leo Flor, officials make the case that “Families and People in Crisis” need “places to go for help instead of waiting for a crisis to occur or get worse” while law enforcement and first responders “need better, more equitable, and faster options than jail and emergency rooms.” Continue reading →

Seattle starts affordable housing fund powered by tax on its largest employers — UPDATE

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The city is putting more of the revenue raised by its tax on Seattle’s largest companies to work to create affordable housing. The Seattle City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to dedicate JumpStart tax funding to a new program dedicated to investing in organizations and projects officials say are working to address displacement and “redress the longstanding harms of discriminatory housing practices.”

Sponsored by Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda, the JumpStart Acquisition and Preservation Program will dedicate up to $2 million a year to administrate a new effort to offer “technical assistance and funding to support CBOs (community based organizations) interested in acquiring and developing affordable housing” and, later, funding to support “acquisition and development activity and loan application.” Continue reading →

Appeals court ends Seattle Chamber of Commerce’s legal bid to upend city’s tax on its largest employers like Amazon, Microsoft, Expedia, and Starbucks

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A legal challenge against Seattle’s tax on its largest employers by the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, the city’s leading business group, has been defeated. Tuesday, the Washington Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of the lawsuit brought in December 2020 that tried to challenged the constitutionality of the tax.

Earlier this year, the city announced the JumpStart Tax was producing stronger than expected revenue for its spending plan of housing, small business, and environmental initiatives. Continue reading →

Up 13.3% — Capitol Hill residential property valuations climb again in 2022

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“Housing inventory for sale remains low, while demand remains very high.” Those words from county assessor John Wilson probably sound familiar. In 2022, property values on Capitol Hill have soared again — this time up 13.3%, according to the county.

The tally comes as part of the annual valuation process by the King County Assessor office. Continue reading →

First results for Seattle’s tax on its largest employers are in with stronger than expected revenue for housing, small business, and the environment

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(Image: Seattle City Council)

Seattle’s payroll tax on its largest employers is paying dividends.

City Council budget committee leader Teresa Mosqueda is touting better than expected revenue results for 2021, the first year Seattle companies with payrolls $7 million and up were taxed on pay to employees making more than $150,000 per year.

“JumpStart is a victory for everyone in Seattle. I’m thrilled that the progressive revenue raised by JumpStart is above revenue projections,” Mosqueda said in her announcement. “JumpStart didn’t only invigorate our economic recovery during a global pandemic, it is jump starting and fundamentally enhancing the services that make communities and our local economy more stable and healthier for the long run.” Continue reading →

Seattle voters approving $1.4B in school levy renewals

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Seattle voters are handily approving hundreds of millions in school funding with early results from February’s special election showing more than three out of four voters in the city approved the two levies on the ballot.

The approved property taxes include the $646.8 million, three-year renewal of the Educational Programs and Operations Levy and the $783 million, six-year renewal of the Building, Technology, and Academics/Athletics Capital Levy.

Last month, the Seattle City Council backed the levies which are a necessity as the state of Washington doesn’t fully fund public education and leaves massive gaps for cities to fill.

The educational programs and operational levy includes funding for “day-to-day operations and funds staff such as nurses and custodians” and would continue funding for programs like child nutrition programs, social-emotional health, and special education, while also funding special programs in science, math, and engineering, and career training. Continue reading →

Seattle City Council calls for support for school levies on February ballot

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The city’s voters don’t usually require much convincing when it comes to approving school levies but the Seattle City Council passed a resolution this week in support of the February ballot propositions to renew to important sources of school funding.

CHS reported here on yet another ballot hitting District 3 mailboxes for the February special election. The February 8th vote will bring two Seattle schools replacement levies to the ballot for voters to decide on educational funding in the city: the $646.8 million, three-year renewal of the Educational Programs and Operations Levy and the $783 million, six-year renewal of the Building, Technology, and Academics/Athletics Capital Levy.

King County Elections says its dropboxes including Capitol Hill’s Broadway box are open and ballots are now in the mail.

The council resolution brought by Councilmember Andrew Lewis cited “opportunity and academic achievement gaps” and its partnership with the Seattle School Board “that yields meaningful investments in the children and young adults enrolled at SPS” in calling for the levy support. Continue reading →

More voting! February brings school levies renewal ballot to Seattle

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Tired of voting yet? With the Sawant recall defeated in December’s vote, don’t put away your special ballot pen. You, District 3 citizen, get to join the rest of Seattle with another vote in February’s special election.

The February 8th vote will bring two Seattle schools replacement levies to the ballot for voters to decide on educational funding in the city: the $646.8 million, three-year renewal of the Educational Programs and Operations Levy and the $783 million, six-year renewal of the Building, Technology, and Academics/Athletics Capital Levy. Continue reading →

15th Ave E Business Improvement Area proposal cruises through committee vote

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By Ryan Packer

Approval of a Business Improvement Area on 15th Ave E is all but assured after the members of the Seattle City Council’s Community Economic Development Committee voted unanimously to approve the proposal Tuesday afternoon.

15th Avenue’s BIA is on track to becoming the eleventh in Seattle and would be the second-smallest in the city in terms of assessment, with 37 properties along the street between E Denny Way and E Mercer Street, including large property owners like Kaiser Permanente and Safeway, taxed to pay for community benefits like graffiti removal and neighborhood beautification.

Neither District 3’s Kshama Sawant nor any other committee members made remarks about the proposal before voting to approve it. Continue reading →

While some small businesses still oppose levy, 15th Ave E Business Improvement Area set for approval by Seattle City Council

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Seattle’s existing BIAs

By Ryan Packer

City councilmembers outnumbered voices calling in, in support or disapproval, as part of the required public hearing held Wednesday afternoon on a proposed 15th Ave E business district in the city council’s Community Economic Development Committee Wednesday afternoon. Most of the people the council heard from during the meeting were among the group of neighborhood advocates who have gotten the BIA to this point.

Jeffrey Pelletier of Board and Vellum and Danielle Hulton of Ada’s Technical Books and Cafe presented to the five council members present, including District 3’s Kshama Sawant.

They presented the BIA as a long time coming, a byproduct of the 15th Avenue East Merchant’s Association, first discussed three years ago, with three formal meetings and several informal ones that led business owners like Ross King of Rainbow Natural Remedies to move forward with the BIA.

Christopher Forcyzk, owner of Smith, was one of three commenters but the only one speaking against the proposed tax assessment that would be levied on property owners along 15th Avenue between E Denny Way and E Mercer Street. Continue reading →