Last week the City Budget Office sent the City Council the customary November update on city revenue projections for this year and next, in time for the Council to incorporate the new figures into its budget planning. The news was mixed; it’s also a bit complicated and takes some unpacking to fully understand.
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Understanding the Mayor’s Proposed 2022 Budget, Part II: The Payroll Tax
This is the second in a series of articles drilling into the details of Mayor Durkan’s proposed 2022 budget. The first installment, looking at city revenues, is here. This installment dives into the Mayor’s proposal for how to spend the forecast $235 million in payroll tax revenues next year, which has already raised some eyebrows among the City Councilmembers.
Continue readingSeattle payroll tax upheld in Superior Court ruling
This afternoon, King County Superior Court Judge Mary Roberts ruled in favor of the City of Seattle, upholding as “constitutionally permissible” the city’s payroll tax enacted last summer and dismissing a lawsuit challenging it.
Continue readingCouncil patching up payroll tax ordinance to try to avoid court defeat
Tomorrow afternoon the City Council will likely give its final approval to a modification to the “Jump Start” payroll tax ordinance it passed last summer. If you read the memo written by Council staff, you will see a feel-good story about the city making this change as a result of feedback from companies. But that’s not what’s really going on with this change: in truth, it’s an attempt to fix a potentially fatal flaw in the ordinance before a King County Superior Court judge hears a challenge to it next month.
Continue readingChamber of Commerce files legal challenge to Seattle payroll tax
This morning the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce announced that it has filed a lawsuit in King County Superior Court arguing that the “Jump Start” payroll tax passed by the Seattle City Council last summer violates the Washington State Constitution.
Continue readingUnderstanding the Mayor’s 2021 budget proposal
This afternoon, Mayor Jenny Durkan officially released her budget proposal for next year. Let’s dive in to the details and see what’s in there.
Continue readingCouncil passes payroll tax out of committee, up for final vote Monday
This afternoon the City Council voted out of committee a proposed payroll tax, setting it up for final adoption next Monday.
Continue readingMosqueda introduces her own “Amazon tax” proposal
This morning, Council member Teresa Mosqueda unveiled her own progressive revenue proposal for Seattle, which is at once both a “light” version of her colleagues’ “Amazon tax” proposal, and also even more explicitly targeted at Amazon.
Continue readingSawant schedules Thursday committee meeting to discuss payroll tax
In a somewhat bizarre move, Council member Sawant has called a meeting of her Sustainability and Renters Rights Committee for Thursday evening to discuss the proposed payroll tax that she and Council member Morales have introduced.
Continue reading“Amazon Tax” bill is off the table — for now.
According to a memo issued today, Council President Lorena Gonzalez has decided that the payroll tax bill put forward by Council members Sawant and Morales does not meet the criteria for allowed Council actions under Governor Inslee’s proclamation modifying the terms of the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA) and Public Records Act (PRA). As such, the Council may not continue deliberations on it while the Governor’s proclamation remains in effect, and next Wednesday’s Budget Committee meeting to discuss the bill has been cancelled.
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