Latest news with #MaritzaRivera
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Special Elections: What voters will decide on Tuesday
Washington voters will head to the polls on Tuesday, deciding the fate of several large school construction plans, security improvements, and dueling strategies to address the cost of living. During a school year that has been encircled by funding issues and the threats of school closures, Seattle Public Schools is asking voters to renew two levies. The measures would not address the nearly $100 million shortfall. Proposition 1 would continue the district's educational and operational levy for three years, paying for programs that are not adequately funded by state resources. Proposition 2 would continue the district's Capital Levy for six years, paying for safety improvements across the district. The city as a whole has two separate measures related to housing construction. In 2023, Seattle voters overwhelmingly voted to create a Social Housing Developer. On Tuesday, they will be asked to fund the developer, for it to be able to build housing projects. A citizen petition put Proposition 1A on the ballot, which would create a five percent tax on all compensation paid above $1 million to fund it. Backers of the measure estimate that will raise $50 million a year to build housing for most income levels, low-income to middle-income. 'Artists, construction workers, people who work at Amazon or Microsoft, they could also be able to live in this permanently affordable housing because it would cater to a broader range of incomes,' said Tiffani McCoy, one of the people behind the campaign, House our Neighbors. Alternatively, Seattle City Council voted to put Proposition 1B on the ballot, which would dedicate $10 million of existing funding from the Jump Start payroll tax to fund the developer for the next six years. Councilmember Maritza Rivera described it as a trial of sorts when voting to put it on the ballot last fall. 'It allows the Seattle Social Housing Developer, a new public development agency, to show what they can build here in Seattle, but it won't give a blank check to another new agency,' Rivera said. McCoy notes the 2023 vote created guidelines and rules for how the Developer can operate and believes the funding proposal from the city council is inadequate to address the housing needs in the city. A similar battle between city council and citizen-driven initiatives is taking place over the minimum wage in Burien. Measure 1A would raise the minimum wage if approved, by tying the city's minimum wage to the inflation formula used by other South King County communities. The city council already raised the minimum wage in October from $16.66/ hour to $21.16/ hour, though that measure excluded union workers and counted tips towards the hourly wage. 'For the majority of individuals in Burien, wages have not kept pace with places like unincorporated King County, Renton, Tukwila and Seattle,' said Rashell, Lisowski, a small business owner who supports the measure. Comments submitted in opposition raise concerns about the ability to control the minimum wage once the formula is put into place and the effect it would have on businesses that operate with smaller margins. The measure includes a phase in time for small and medium-sized businesses. The Issaquah School District is asking voters to continue the current levy rate and pass a bond to raise $231.6 million that would fund safety and security improvements, expand and remodel Liberty High School, build a new high school and other capital improvements. This vote comes months after voters rejected a $642 Million bond. Similarly, voters in Lake Stevens will decide whether to renew their levy at a lower tax rate to authorize a $314 million bond that would add classrooms, modernize facilities, build a new elementary school, replace and expand buildings at Glenwood and Skyline Elementary schools as well as at Lake Stevens Middle school. The district would build a new Secondary Innovative Learning Center with other district-wide improvements planned. For the third time, voters in Arlington will be asked to replace Post Middle School, a building with heating and cooling issues as well as outdoor areas that are prone to flooding in the rain. This time, the district has made the replacement footprint smaller, to scale back the cost. The district says the design would be able to add capacity at a later date if more funding became available. 'It's challenging to really save money at Post because everything is so outdated,' said Gary Sabol, the communications director for the district. Voters will be asked to continue its Education and Operational levy for another four years to fund programs for special education, safety staff, technology and extracurricular activities.
Axios
28-01-2025
- Business
- Axios
Seattle voters weigh how to pay for social housing
Seattle voters are faced with competing ballot measures as they decide whether to raise taxes on businesses to pay for public housing projects. Why it matters: The Feb. 11 special election will determine how much money will go toward the city's new social housing developer, which voters created two years ago through a different ballot measure, I-135. Catch up quick: Social housing is a type of publicly owned housing that caps rents at 30% of a tenant's annual income. People making up to 120% of the area median income can live there, with the goal that higher rents paid by middle-income tenants will help subsidize the lower rents paid by lower-income residents. Last year, the median income in Seattle for the purpose of affordable housing programs topped $100,000 for a single person, per city officials. Zoom in: One measure on the Feb. 11 ballot, Proposition 1A, would enact a new 5% payroll tax on Seattle companies with workers who make at least $1 million a year. An employer would pay the 5% tax on the portion of an employee's salary that exceeds $1 million. Businesses would be prohibited from passing the tax on to workers. That proposal would raise an estimated $50 million per year. A second option, Proposition 1B, wouldn't raise any new tax revenue. Instead, it would allocate $10 million per year of the city's existing JumpStart payroll tax revenue to the social housing developer, with the plan sunsetting after five years. This approach would spend a maximum of $50 million, a fifth of what Proposition 1A would raise over the same five-year period. How it works: To enact either measure, voters first must select "yes" to indicate they want to pass one of the two competing proposals. Then, they can choose whether they are voting for Proposition 1A or Proposition 1B. Voters could also answer "no" to the initial question, indicating they'd rather not enact either policy. Flashback: Supporters of imposing the 5% tax gathered more than 35,000 signatures last year to ensure that Proposition 1A qualified for the ballot. But members of the City Council decided to put forth Proposition 1B, with City Councilmember Maritza Rivera arguing the city shouldn't "give a blank check to yet another new agency that does not have the experience creating housing." What they're saying: Tiffani McCoy of the Proposition 1A campaign told Axios the alternative plan effectively rejects the social housing model that voters approved two years ago, while siphoning money away from other public housing projects. She said the mixed-income model is vital to ensure Seattle can be affordable for everyone, including nurses, teachers and other middle-income workers. The other side: Rachel Smith, president and CEO of the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, told the Seattle Channel that the idea behind Proposition 1B is "to use the money for those who need it most" by focusing on people who make up to 80% of the area median income. What's next: Ballots must be postmarked by Feb. 11 or returned to an official ballot dropbox by 8pm that day to be counted.
