Mayor Bruce Harrell could pat himself on the again for balancing a $250 million shortfall in his newly unveiled 2025-2026 price range with out levying any new taxes, however a broad coalition of 35 neighborhood advocacy and labor teams say it is not the flex he thinks it’s. The Mayor reduce 159 Metropolis jobs, $80 million in Metropolis programming, and most audaciously, Harrell raided $330 million from JumpStart income, a pot of cash earmarked for inexpensive housing and Inexperienced New Deal initiatives, and financial growth for small enterprise.
Funds Director Dan Eder stated the Mayor needed to make “onerous decisions,” however the sympathy rings hole: The Mayor proposed $100 million in new spending, together with a $60 million bump to the Seattle Police Division price range. In all, Harrell selected to appease the violent arm of the state and his rich donors on the expense of inexpensive housing and his employees.
JumpStart To Soar Begin The Common Fund
Within the greatest change, Harrell proposed laws so as to add flexibility to the JumpStart Payroll Expense Tax, a modest tax on the Metropolis’s greatest companies supported by a broad coalition.
JumpStart has overperformed yearly because the Metropolis began amassing it. In accordance with a presentation in a media briefing forward of the price range drop, the Metropolis assumed in 2020 that JumpStart would rake in $232 million in 2025. Now, the Metropolis estimates it’s going to generate $430 million subsequent yr.
Whereas the Metropolis has used JumpStart to steadiness the price range for a few years, the earlier council deliberate to cease that follow in 2025 and return to the spending plan, which obligated 62% of the fund to go to inexpensive housing. As an alternative, the Mayor proposed taking $287 million from JumpStart to help the overall fund, siphoning off a further $43 million for a brand new reserve fund, after which “sustaining” $233 million in JumpStart priorities. In all, the proposed price range spends $520 million in JumpStart income in 2025—the whole $430 million projected to come back in subsequent yr, plus $90 million in one-time JumpStart funds.
Eder stated the Mayor’s price range nonetheless manages to drag off “historic” investments into inexpensive housing, Inexperienced New Deal initiatives, and different JumpStart priorities regardless of raiding the fund. However that’s accounting for all different income streams.
The Mayor allotted $31 million from all funding sources to Inexperienced New Deal initiatives in 2025, a development of seven.6% from final yr. One other JumpStart precedence, the Equitable Improvement Initiative, received 4.4% improve from final yr.
As for inexpensive housing, the Mayor proposed $342.2 million to the Workplace of Housing in 2025 and $342.9 million in 2026 from all sources. In 2024, the Metropolis allotted $339.3 million for (OH), that means he bumped investments by 2.5% between 2024 and 2025 and a pair of.69% between 2024 and 2026. Inflation will virtually actually outpace that development.
Clearly, if the Mayor hadn’t sucked out greater than half of the fund, and returned to the meant spend plan, they might have invested much more. The funding would have been no less than $204 million better if the Mayor used the $330 million he took from JumpStart because the council initially obligated it—62% for inexpensive housing.
Eder tried to present the JumpStart raid a optimistic spin. He stated if Harrell has relied solely on cuts, that may imply a 14% reduce to all Metropolis departments funded by the overall fund or a 30% reduce to all departments if he protected public security spending.
Nonetheless, that ignores the fact that the Metropolis can impose new taxes. The latest Progressive Income Stabilization Job Pressure already got here up with an inventory of choices. However after all, that may piss off the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce.
Different Price Saving Measures
The Mayor may also reduce 159 funded Metropolis positions. Due to his hiring freeze, lots of these positions are already empty and gained’t require any layoffs, however departments must do with out employees promised in earlier budgets.
The Mayor might nonetheless lay off 76 individuals. About two-thirds of these lay offs come from internal-facing departments such because the Seattle Data Expertise Division, Human Assets Division, and Finance and Administrative Companies quite than public-facing positions. Greater than a dozen will come from the Seattle Division of Building and Inspection (SDCI), which has much less work because the Metropolis cuts pink tape for builders.
Because the Metropolis Council (and I) proceed to learn by way of the dense price range proposal, I’ll replace about different programmatic cuts.
The Seattle Metropolis Council nonetheless has time to cease Harrell’s assault on working individuals over the subsequent few weeks. However do not maintain your breath. All however one council member owes their latest election to company donors they usually have not strayed from their overlords’ agenda but.
However change typically occurs regardless of who’s in energy, not due to it. For these organizing towards price range cuts, you may inform the council how you are feeling tomorrow at public remark.
