SEATTLE – Councilmember Tim Burgess (Position 8, Citywide) and Chair of the Seattle City Employees’ Retirement System Board, and Jeff Davis, Executive Director of the SCERS Board, issued the following statement at the conclusion of today’s Board meeting, during which time fossil fuel divestment was discussed: “Today’s Board meeting was well attended by community members...
Month: July 2017
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Council-Approved $29m Affordable Housing Bonds Open for Business
SEATTLE – Councilmember Lisa Herbold (District 1, West Seattle & South Park) expressed her appreciation to the Office of Housing today that some of the funds from the Council-approved $29 million in bonds for affordable housing will be available this Fall via the Office of Housing’s (OH) annual competitive funding process. The bond funding will...
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Seattle Taxes the Rich! Onward to Rent Control! My Speech at the Final Vote
Since I first ran for office, Socialist Alternative and I have organized for a $15 minimum wage, taxing the rich, and rent control. We won $15/hour, and now our growing movement has taxed the rich! But we know our work is far from over. Big business, the super-wealthy, and the right-wing plan on taking our […]
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Expanding the Jewel of Seattle: Pike Place MarketFront opens its doors!
Pike Place Market has long been the jewel of Seattle—110 years next month to be exact. I live just five blocks away from the Market, and I relish my time selecting fresh fruit and flowers from market vendors every week. Seattle is fortunate, indeed, to have such a vibrant, historic piece of our legacy for […]
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Harrell, González Statement on Committee Approval of Bias-Free Policing Law
Council President Bruce Harrell (District 2, South Seattle) and Councilmember M. Lorena González (Position 9, Citywide) issued the following statement following the Gender Equity, Safe Communities and New Americans Committee’s approval of a bias-free policing law in Seattle: “This legislation sends a strong message that the City is committed to ensuring constitutional policing now and...
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Sawant to Republicans and the Billionaire Class: ‘Our Tax the Rich Movement is Ready to Fight in the Courts’
Councilmember Kshama Sawant (District 3, Central Seattle) issued the following statement after the tax the rich vote in City Hall and in response to the Washington State Republican Party’s press conference announcing their opposition to the tax: “Today, Seattle’s movement to tax the rich just won a powerful victory in City Hall! Congratulations to all...
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City-Wide Income Tax Vote
On July 10th, I joined the rest of the City Council in voting yes on the city-wide Income Tax ordinance. This unanimous vote of the Council is just the first step in what will be a long legal battle. There is no disputing that our tax system in Washington is regressive and is hitting low-income […]
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Council Approves City Income Tax on High Earners
Council unanimously approved legislation today creating a city income tax on high-income households to move Seattle toward a fairer, more progressive tax system. The legislation (Council Bill 119002) is intended to reduce regressive taxes such as property taxes, and finance priorities like addressing the homelessness crisis and offsetting federal budget cuts. The legislation will place...
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Part II: Displacement in the MHA Draft Environmental Impact Statement; SPU Strategic Business Plan, Update 2; Income Tax Legislation Update; In-District Office Hours
Part II: Displacement in the MHA Draft Environmental Impact Statement Last month in my blog post, I wrote a “Part 1” article describing my disappointment in a recent Displacement Risk Analysis being done as part of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the proposed Citywide Rezones that are part of implementing a Mandatory Housing […]