HB 2907 dies, but gets resurrected as HB 2948 (updated)

In the ongoing saga of the current state legislative session, last night was the deadline for bills to be passed out of their “house of origin.” One of the many bills that didn’t make it was HB 2907, the much-talked-about bill sponsored by Rep. Nicole Macri that would grant King County the authority to impose a payroll tax to pay for affordable housing and homeless services. For the last several days, Macri had been negotiating with a variety of stakeholders to find a compromise that could gather enough support to pass, and the clock ran out. But today, Macri introduced …

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Sawant unveils proposal for Seattle payroll tax

This morning, Council member Kshama Sawant unveiled her proposal for a new payroll tax in Seattle, independent of (and possibly on top of) one already proposed for King County. She said that her proposed tax would raise $300 million annually, of which 75% would be used for affordable housing and social services, and 25% for converting existing homes from oil and gas heat to electric systems.

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