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Business Leaders to City: Don’t Raise Our Taxes

City Hall, Politics   May 4, 2010 at 1:46 pm Erica C. Barnett

In a chilly tent housing a massive boat under construction at Kvichak Marine Industries in Fremont, with the crashing of heavy machinery in the background, a dozen business representatives took turns this morning expressing their opposition to the passage of any new taxes to help fill a $50-million-plus shortfall in next year’s city budget. Yesterday, the groups sent a letter to Mayor Mike McGinn and the city council imploring them not to raise taxes this year.

The business folks—who included small-business owners like Asif Rehan Alvi, of Capitol Hill’s Perfect Copy and Print, to former mayor Wes Uhlman, now head of the board of the Association of Washington Businesses—said that instead of raising taxes, the city should figure out ways to “trim fat” and cut costs.

“We are in the midst of a severe recession … and we are not going to tax our way out of a recession,” Uhlman said. “We are going to have to create jobs [and] live within our present income.” Uhlman conceded that “living within our present income” might mean laying off essential city workers, such as police and fire, but added, “public safety is number one. Nothing’s more important than that.”

Travis Rosenthal, owner of Tango restaurant on Capitol Hill, rattled off a list of taxes and fees that have increased his costs over the past year and a half, including an increase in the state minimum wage to $8.55 an hour; an increase in the cost of his liquor license as well as the cost of liquor, wine, and beer; and an increase in the state unemployment tax. “We’re pretty black and blue from Olympia, and we’re not looking for a knockout punch from the city,” Rosenthal said.

Asked what specific measures the city could take to cut costs and “increase efficiencies”—another phrase that got thrown around repeatedly this morning—Allen suggested reducing the city’s purchasing practices, giving city employees incentives to take early retirement, reducing labor costs through the contract negotiation process, requiring employees to pay a greater percentage of their retirement pensions, improving collaboration between city departments to reduce redundant operations, and reducing health care costs by, among other things, encouraging healthier lifestyle practices, as the county has done (with mixed results). Additionally, Rosenthal suggested that extending closing hours for bars until 4 am—a move that would require a change in state liquor policy—could bring in more tax revenues while benefiting bars and clubs.

The city council and mayor have not proposed any specific taxes to close the budget gap; however, at last week’s public hearing on the budget, council members and the mayor referred repeatedly to the need to raise new revenues to help address the shortfall. Those could include an increase in the commercial parking tax; an increase to business and occupation taxes; new or increased fees for city facilities like sports fields and pools; or the reinstatement of the employee hours tax, commonly known as the “head tax.”




  • Stacy

    Wouldn't it be funny if the Mayor and Council responded with a list of ways these businesses could “increase efficiencies” and “trim fat?”

  • Tangent

    “Wouldn't it be funny if the Mayor and Council responded with a list of ways these businesses could “increase efficiencies” and “trim fat?”

    If these increases go through they'll be doing just that. Layoffs are just hilarious when you aren't the one being laid off, aren't they?

  • Brian

    I think the City should propose all kinds of fat to be cut, especially fat that directly benefits business. Maybe reduce the planning staff so that new development proposals will take longer. Maybe reduce policing in commercial areas, Maybe halt all SDOT projects that could benefit businesses. I know why don't we send all those people who rely on public services these fat cats think is fat to go chill on their front step and ask for private subsidies (i.e. panhandle). We are trimming the fat I tell you. A lean mean, non-existent gov't machine.

  • just a drama thing

    Organizations like the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce that pay their executives well over $200,000 per year (more than the mayor of Seattle) need need to do dramatic things like this to show their value to their membership base. This is just posturing.

  • just a drama thing

    Brilliant!

  • http://www.joeszilagyi.com/ Joe Szilagyi

    I highly doubt there are $50,000,000 to be found in a single fiscal year's budget from improving purchasing practices, giving city employees incentives to take early retirement, reducing labor costs through the contract negotiation process, requiring employees to pay a greater percentage of their retirement pensions, improving collaboration between city departments to reduce redundant operations, and reducing health care costs by, among other things, encouraging healthier lifestyle practices, as the county has done.

    Revenues are flat out DOWN because of the recession. Either taxes have to go up, or services have to be cut, or a combination. These guys are opposed to any tax hike. So services, by their standard, have to be cut. Which services get cut? They still haven't answered the questions and answered with generic common sense practices that save you some, but not as much as is needed.

    If services are cut, residents suffer. If taxes are raised, businesses suffer.

    Isn't a middle ground therefore the correct answer until things sort themselves out nationally? Business is not more important than Seattle residents, and vice versa. These people with the strident language need to get over themselves as much as the “no services cuts” crowd need to get over themselves. Your egos, gentlemen, are worth as much as the bad credit in the market: jack and shit.

    Raise some taxes, cut some services, exempt all critical services from cuts: police, medical, fire, transit. There's no other way.

  • http://www.joeszilagyi.com/ Joe Szilagyi

    While it would be incredibly funny (it would be, actually) it wouldn't be very helpful.

  • http://www.joeszilagyi.com/ Joe Szilagyi

    If I were a paying member of the Chamber these days I'd be looking very closely at the ROI on that $200,000 and raising hell about it.

  • morning fizzy

    Which services get cut? Which exact, specific, named services? .

    I would suggest reduced enforcement of the aggressive panhandling laws.

  • morning fizzy

    Let's see, we want people to live healthier lifestyles while raising more money on cigarettes and booze.

  • kurisu

    They might start by dropping frivolous lawsuits against the city that eat up both business and taxpayer dollars…

  • ratcityreprobate

    Eliminating street cleaning downtown would be one place to start. Letting business owners empty street trash receptacles might be another. Streets and sidewalks downtown that need maintenance or replacement could simply be closed for the duration of the recession. We could close all homeless shelters and turn those folks out on the downtown streets to sleep in the doorways of retailers and office buildings. That might save a bundle.

  • N8

    The easiest way to not have a tax increase is for the City to cut services to businesses and stop subsidizing their electricity.

  • morning fizzy

    The City Light and Utility budgets have nothing to do with the general fund.

    Bankrupting or just reducing DT business will just exasperate the situation

  • Jen

    Pool fees are already pretty hefty. The unlimited pool pass is already $50/month — much more and I may as well go join LA Fitness or the downtown Y.

    I go past the Meadowbrook park tennis courts all the time, and so often in the evenings the courts are completely empty but the overhead lights are blazing bright. Is there no way to cut some of that waste?

  • WOW !

    Need to cut $50,000,000 from the City's general fund budget ? Layoff 500 City employees.

  • SEN

    Where's the Chamber on I-1098, the income tax initiative? Seems like its resulting reduction in the B&O tax and property tax would be business's best bet. That and 24-hour drinking licenses…

  • Gontumono

    Nobody's going to be building any condos for the next 5 to 10 years. That ship has sailed.

  • phil

    “Look into the idea of street-level parking permits in general, like Boston IIRC does”

    Yeah, let's see what the real demand for neighborhood parking is once folks actually have to pay for keeping those cars they barely use on the street.