Washington

Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin

(107,996 posts) Tue Apr 4, 2017, 01:18 PM Apr 2017

Seattle's proposed homelessness property tax has become a countywide sales tax proposal

Seattle Mayor Ed Murray on Monday said he has decided against asking city voters to OK a property tax to help solve the city's homelessness crisis and instead is working with King County on a sales tax hike.

Three weeks ago, Murray shared details of the five-year, $275 million property tax plan. Now he and King County Executive Dow Constantine said they're going to convene a task force to come up with a strategy to get people living on the streets into permanent homes. This would be funded by a 0.1 percent sales tax increase that would go to county voters in 2018.

The tax, which would add a penny to the cost of a $10 purchase, would raise $68 million a year, or $340 million over five years.

Regional efforts to reduce homelessness have largely failed as the number of men, women and children sleeping on the streets of the county hit 4,505 in 2016. That was a 19-percent increase over 2015.

http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2017/04/03/seattles-proposedhomelessness-property-tax-has.html?ana=e_me_set2&s=newsletter&ed=2017-04-04&u=ColXVN5SPzQtLHFP87ho2w07857290&t=1491324742&j=77841211

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Seattle's proposed homelessness property tax has become a countywide sales tax proposal (Original Post) Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin Apr 2017 OP

I wonder how much higher the sales tax is going to have to go Aristus Apr 2017 #1

Here's an idea: quit knocking down their affordable housing LisaM Apr 2017 #2

Aristus

(66,380 posts)

1. I wonder how much higher the sales tax is going to have to go

Reply to Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin (Original post)

Tue Apr 4, 2017, 01:29 PM

Apr 2017

before people start discussing the value of a state income tax.

I wouldn't say that the people of Oregon love their state income tax, but they do love asking for sales tax exemption forms when they are traveling outside of Oregon.

LisaM

(27,813 posts)

2. Here's an idea: quit knocking down their affordable housing

Reply to Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin (Original post)

Tue Apr 4, 2017, 01:32 PM

Apr 2017

and giving huge tax breaks to developers who only build luxury or higher-end housing. I was listening to a fascinating piece on the radio the other day that talked about Toronto's housing crisis - similar to Seattle's - and the fact that all the new housing was specifically high end. Developers could build lower-income housing but they don't, and the offsets they propose are years in the future.

In the meantime, one affordable place after another is getting knocked down and people are out on the streets.

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