Latest news with #LaurelDemkovich
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Seattle democracy voucher renewal set for August ballot
A voter puts a ballot in the drop box at the Ballard branch of the Seattle Public Library in King County in August 2024. This voting location is one of the most popular in the county. (Laurel Demkovich/Washington State Standard) Seattle voters will be asked in August if they want to continue paying for the city's democracy voucher program — a first-of-its-kind public campaign-financing system that gives voters money to donate to political candidates. Seattle voters created the program in 2015, along with a 10-year property tax levy to fund it. The voucher program aims to make election financing more diverse and equitable by giving voters four $25 coupons they can give to city of Seattle candidates during elections. Ten years after it was created, city officials say the program has been a success. On Monday, the Seattle City Council voted unanimously to send a property tax levy renewal to the August ballot that would fund the program for another decade. If passed, the levy would cost the median homeowner about $13 a year and raise about $45 million over 10 years. The figure is about $15 million higher than the expiring levy to account for inflation and increased candidate participation in the program. City Council members praised the program across the board, with several saying they'd seen the positive impact firsthand during their own runs for office. 'For me, this specifically meant that I didn't need to take campaign donations that I felt might have implicit strings attached,' said Councilmember Dan Strauss. 'This allowed me to be more independent, and it meant that I actively chose to knock on everyday Seattleites' doors rather than spending time on the phone, calling political donors.' Many Councilmembers said the program is especially important in light of threats to democracy at the national level and the growing influence of wealth in politics. 'Our democracy is at risk,' said Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck. 'We must take every step here in Seattle to protect it, because in a healthy democracy, billionaires can't buy elections.' Most democracy vouchers go unused. A study by researchers at Stony Brook and Georgetown University found that participation among the voting-age population declined from 7.59% in the 2021 election to 4.72% in 2023. City Council member Cathy Moore noted that there remains a need to educate people about the program, particularly in communities where English is not the primary language. Candidates in the races for Seattle mayor, city attorney and three Council seats are eligible for democracy vouchers this year. This article was first published by KNKX through the Murrow News Fellow program, managed by Washington State University.
Yahoo
27-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Rent increase cap proposal heads to WA governor
Multi-family housing in Olympia, Washington. (Laurel Demkovich/Washington State Standard) Washington is poised to limit annual residential rent increases with legislation now headed to the governor's desk. The House and Senate on Sunday, the last day of the legislative session, passed the rent increase limit at 7% plus inflation or 10%, whichever is lower. Landlords could still set rent however they please when a tenancy begins. Rent increases for manufactured homes are limited to 5% under House Bill 1217. While the rent cap policy on traditional homes would expire after 15 years, the manufactured home rule wouldn't lapse. The final version was a compromise after moderate Democrats in the Senate wouldn't go along with the initial 7% cap, without inflation, the House had approved. Landlords also couldn't raise rents in the first year of a tenancy under the proposed law. If a landlord violates the provisions, tenants or the state attorney general could bring litigation. Buildings owned by nonprofits or public housing authorities would be exempt from the limits. The same goes for duplexes, triplexes or fourplexes if the owner lives in one of the units, as well as new construction for its first dozen years. Republicans argue the bill will chill development and price landlords out of the business. Most Democrats say it'll give renters a modicum of predictability as they deal with the high cost of living. The Senate approved the bill on a 27-20 vote, with Democratic Sens. Annette Cleveland and Sharon Shewmake joining Republicans in opposition. The House vote was 54-44. Five Democratic representatives opposed the final bill. It was a long and windy road to Sunday's votes. After stalling in the Senate last year, lawmakers came into 2025 energized to enshrine House Bill 1217 into law. But after passing the House, the Senate, in dramatic fashion, lifted the cap from the initial 7% to 10% plus inflation and exempted many single-family homes entirely, moves advocates said 'gutted' the proposal. In negotiations, Democrats in both chambers agreed to excise the carveout and find a middle ground on the limit. But when the new iteration landed on the Senate floor Friday night, lawmakers were thwarted by a procedural snafu that delayed votes a couple more days. The compromise frustrated advocates, but they said it was better than nothing. 'Even a 7% rent increase will force some people to move, disrupting their lives and their communities, and some will have no option but to move into cars, shelters, or tents,' said Michele Thomas, of the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance. 'But this bill makes a first step towards sensible protections against egregious predatory rent increases.' Gov. Bob Ferguson has repeatedly declined to weigh in on the legislation. He told reporters Friday that he recognizes 'the different perspectives that different folks within the caucuses have, and so we're trying to be helpful on that and I feel optimistic that they're going to work something out,' but stopped short of saying what he hoped that resolution would be. Once the bill reaches his desk, Ferguson has 20 days, excluding Sundays, to act on it. If he signs, the policy would go into effect immediately.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump election order is the latest target for Washington AG Brown
Ballot envelopes sit in the Thurston County elections center. (Laurel Demkovich/Washington State Standard) The Washington and Oregon attorneys general sued the Trump administration Friday over its executive order on elections that seeks to withhold funding unless states comply with dramatic rule changes. President Donald Trump's sweeping order, signed March 25, looks to uproot voter registration and mail-in voting rules under the auspices of eradicating election fraud. Notably for Washington and Oregon, the order seeks to prevent states from counting ballots received after Election Day. 'The order makes it harder to vote, erodes public confidence in our elections and makes it more expensive for states to administer our systems,' Washington Attorney General Nick Brown said, 'and most alarming, it would disenfranchise hundreds of thousands of Washington residents.' The order tells the bipartisan and independent Election Assistance Commission to require documentation of U.S. citizenship, like a passport or enhanced driver's license, as a prerequisite to registering to vote in federal elections. Over 9% of American citizens of voting age don't have proof of citizenship readily available, according to a report from the Brennan Center for Justice. Americans of color are more likely than white citizens to lack on-hand citizenship documents. Washington state law mandates that people attest to their citizenship to register to vote. Statute also requires state and local election officials to regularly review voter rolls to identify people not eligible to vote. Washington is one of 18 states to count mail ballots as long as they are postmarked by Election Day. In the 2024 general election, for example, election officials received nearly 120,000 valid ballots after Election Day that were postmarked on time. In the primary last year, officials accepted 151,000. 'This is like allowing persons who arrive 3 days after Election Day, perhaps after a winner has been declared, to vote in person at a former voting precinct, which would be absurd,' Trump's order contends. This could also impact ballots returned to drop boxes on time, but not immediately retrieved. Other states only accept votes they receive by Election Day. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Department of Government Efficiency would review state voter rolls to ensure they're consistent with the new federal requirements. In a press conference, Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs called the idea for the review 'foolhardy and ridiculous.' The order directs the Election Assistance Commission to condition federal funding on states complying with these new demands. States that don't comply could also face action from the U.S. attorney general. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle, argues Trump's order violates the U.S. Constitution, which says states will decide election mechanics, and unconstitutionally infringes on the right to vote. 'The president has no authority to set rules for how states conduct their elections,' said Brown. 'Democrats and Republicans in our state have worked together to protect and expand participation in our democracy, and Washington has a robust, safe and secure, voting system.' The amount of money the state receives from the commission has varied widely year-to-year. Last year, Washington got $1 million, the lowest in six years, according to the secretary of state's office. The order isn't clear on whether the administration could also withhold other funding. Washington's lawsuit is one of several to challenge the president's order. On Monday, top Democratic organizations and leaders, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, filed suit. And on Thursday, 19 other Democratic-led states brought a separate lawsuit over the order in federal court in Massachusetts. Unlike other cases Washington has brought, the attorney general is not asking for a judge to temporarily block Trump's election order. 'Temporary restraining orders need to be brought where there's an emergency impact,' Brown said. 'Because we don't have an election pending in the short term, we did not feel like a TRO was necessary.' Friday's lawsuit sets the stage for yet another showdown between Washington and the president. Brown has now filed 11 lawsuits against the Trump administration since the president's second term began in January. It is also the fourth this week, including a lawsuit filed Tuesday against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. over billions in canceled federal health funding. A judge on Thursday agreed to temporarily block the administration from terminating the grant funding. On Friday, Brown also was one of the leaders of a new 16-state lawsuit against the Trump administration over disruptions to grant funding from the National Institutes of Health. And Brown said the state was joining yet another case with 20 other states to protect small federal agencies focused on museums, libraries, minority-owned businesses and more. Trump has proposed dismantling them. 'I'm sorry to say, at this rate it is headed, we will have more cases in the future,' he said.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Are Washington lawmakers about to tax storage unit rentals?
The Washington State Capitol Campus on Jan. 21, 2025. (Photo by Laurel Demkovich/Washington State Standard) Washington Democrats are looking at taxing storage units as a way to help bridge the state's multibillion-dollar budget shortfall and raise new money for housing. House Bill 1907 would redefine self-storage unit rentals as retail transactions subject to the state's main business tax and sales and use tax. Storage rentals in Washington are now treated like an arrangement between a renter and a landlord, with neither the consumer nor the business paying these taxes. By changing this to a retail sale, similar to buying an item at a store, consumers would pay sales tax with every payment for their storage unit. Washington's sales tax is 6.5% at the state level and local taxes can bring it up to around 10%. Estimates attached to the bill show it would raise about $57.6 million for the next two-year state budget and around $90 million in the two-year cycle after that. Those totals do not include local government revenue. The bill says these collections would be intended for affordable housing programs, but the legislation would not make it mandatory that the money is always used in this way. 'I think that closing this tax loophole and bringing in some of those funds to help with our housing crisis is something that makes sense,' said Rep. Strom Peterson, D-Edmonds, sponsor of the bill. He noted there are about 46 million square feet of storage space in the state. Storage facility industry groups and businesses are swiping back at the proposal, saying it will push up prices and pointing out that the units are often used by low-income renters, members of the military, and people in difficult circumstances, including those who are homeless. 'This is not just an unfair financial burden, it is an unconstitutional attempt to tax rental real estate,' said Patrick Gilroy from the Washington Self Storage Association. He added that storage facility owners pay other taxes, including property tax. The fiscal analysis for the bill acknowledges there is some risk that the tax could get invalidated in court but adds there is 'a good likelihood' it would be upheld by the state Supreme Court. Republican leadership opposes the tax. 'It appears to me that taxing storage units is an anti-renter tax, because whenever you think about the people who need those storage units, you're looking at people who are renting apartments and possibly don't have sufficient storage inside of their apartment units,' said Sen. Chris Gildon, R-Puyallup, a top Republican on the Senate Ways and Means Committee. The Association of Washington Cities is among the supporters of the bill, saying cities have been under pressure to maximize the use of available urban land to expand housing. The fiscal analysis shows the tax would generate an estimated $61 million for local governments over the four years beginning July 1. 'We think it's totally appropriate to treat these businesses like any other business in this state that is operating and making transactions,' Carl Schroeder, a lobbyist for the association, told lawmakers in testimony on Tuesday.
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
WA lawmakers weigh further delay to early learning expansion
Advocates for the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program rally at the state capitol on Feb. 6, 2025. (Photo by Laurel Demkovich/Washington State Standard) Nearly 15 years ago, Washington state lawmakers approved a plan to make a state-funded early learning program an entitlement for all low-income families who qualify. Since then, that plan has been delayed three times. As lawmakers face a multibillion-dollar budget hole over the next four years, it's becoming clearer that they will likely need to again push off the expansion — currently set to take effect in the 2026-2027 school year. 'I am not thrilled to bring this to your attention,' House Appropriations Committee Chair Timm Ormsby, D-Spokane, said in a public hearing earlier this month. 'It is a response to the fiscal reality that we are in.' Washington's Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program provides free part-day and full-day preschool and other services related to mental health, nutrition and family support for 3- and 4-year-olds in low-income families. As of last year, the program served more than 16,000 children in more than 480 locations across the state. The Department of Children, Youth and Families estimated that the state would need another 14,000 slots once the entitlement was fully implemented in 2031. To be eligible, families must earn no more than 35% of the state median income. That's $47,179 for a family of four, as of October. Some children whose families are over that limit may also be accepted if they meet other criteria, like being homeless, having parents who are incarcerated, or having developmental delays. 'We are serving our most vulnerable population,' said Michelle Rahl-Lewis, director of early learning for Tacoma Public Schools. 'One of our biggest goals is just really teaching the students how to self regulate and supporting our families in their own growth.' But offering the services for free is expensive, and in a year where lawmakers are looking for ways to fill a budget gap, delaying a further expansion of the program could provide significant savings for the state. A bill sponsored by Ormsby and requested by the Office of Financial Management would delay the entitlement until the 2030-2031 school year. At that point, it would become available to any family with an income at or below 36% of the state median. Starting in the 2034-2035 school year, any family with an income at or below 50% of the state median income would qualify. Ormsby's bill would also delay expansions planned for Working Connections Child Care, the state's subsidy program. The proposed delays align with budget proposals from both former Gov. Jay Inslee and Gov. Bob Ferguson. In Inslee's budget, the delay of the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program accounted for nearly $146 million in savings through 2027. Delaying the state subsidy expansion would save another nearly $120 million. 'This is a tough time,' Sheri Sawyer, with the Office of Financial Management, told the House Appropriations Committee this month. 'You all are going to grapple with difficult decisions, and this is one more option for you to consider.' Ormsby emphasized that a delay is not a funding cut. 'This is not a step back,' he added. 'We're not taking away benefits that are currently occurring.' Rahl-Lewis said any cuts to current funding would be 'catastrophic' to Tacoma's program and many like it that families depend on. Early Childhood Education and Assistance Programs offer more than child care, said Stephany Contreras Roman, an early learning teacher in Tacoma. She said the program's teachers often wear many hats, like nutrition specialist, family support and interpreter. 'We're not just teachers,' she said. ' This is not just a one-role job.' Some early learning advocates said they were expecting to have to pause the entitlement implementation regardless of the budget situation because there aren't currently enough providers to handle an influx of new children who would be eligible. To recruit and retain more providers, advocates continue to push for higher pay and benefits for early learning and child care workers. Inslee's budget proposed an 18% rate increase for Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program providers, but that too could be undermined by the budget crunch. Budget talks won't fully ramp up until mid-March after lawmakers get updated revenue estimates. Until then, agencies continue to look for ways to cut spending per a request from Gov. Bob Ferguson.
