EVERETT — Balancing its $3.37 billion budget in a 3-2 vote, the Snohomish County Council approved its spending and tax plan for 2027-2028 utilizing a 1% property tax increase along with surface water management tax increases.
“The budget that’s before us is built on over $24 million in additional property taxes,” Councilmember Nate Nehring accounted, from the dais, during the budget hearing. “Another $10.5 million in surface water management fees, and then we also authorize an increase of $2.6 million dollars in Conservation District charges. I think this budget spends more than we need to.”
Council chair, Megan Dunn said, “Without the revenue, we would have had to cut hundreds of positions, most from the general fund and 75% of our general fund is public safety. Today, we’re saving hundreds of positions potentially from the general fund and from public safety.”
Dunn cited County Executive, Dave Somers’s, original budget proposal which stayed mostly intact through the Council’s review and final vote today. “The Executive reduced spending by $22 million, they cut 90 positions, and we had the Sustainability Task Force that went through looking at the cost and the revenues, that was the most robust public input process to date for budgets at least in my time on Council,” Dunn offered.
The General Fund faces a projected $56 million biennial deficit. The Council did authorize spending cuts in the upcoming two-year budget cycle, but it basically nibbled at the edges with some reductions in spending increases to Office of Public Defender and cutting a few full-time employee positions that equate to just a few million dollars in biennial savings.
Dunn, along with Councilmembers Strom Peterson and Jared Mead voted in favor of the biennial budget. Councilmembers Nehring and Sam Low voted against the spending plan.
Dunn acknowledged the approved budget still needs Executive Somers approval to end the lengthy budget process, “I also appreciate working with the Executive’s office, so we don’t get a veto.” Somers signature is the next step to finalize the new budget.
Low remarked, “I do not support this budget as it prioritizes significant property tax increases and fees with minimal cuts, which will in turn hurt our seniors, families, and most vulnerable. Property taxes are pricing people out of their homes.”
The 3-2 budget vote is emblematic of the eternal political question of cutting spending or increasing taxes to pay for government services.
Dunn described the new budget saying, “We did not take all the revenue options that were possible, including banked capacity,” referring to property tax that could be increased by more than 1% per year since the County has not increased property tax at the 1% per year level on previous years–allowing a jurisdiction to impose no property tax within a calendar year and then potentially increasing property tax by 2% in a following year, thus banking the increase for a later time.
Dunn indicated the 2027-28 budget is “cutting as much as possible, and in my opinion, raising as little as possible on the revenue side.”
Nehring tied the 2027-28 budget tax increases to previous tax hikes approved earlier this year by the County Council. “This is all in addition to the increases which were put in place earlier this year, $24 million in annual sales tax increase, and $6 million dollars in annual car tab increases. While some of the amendments that we’ve included in this have reduced spending, the budget is still built on a significant increase to the tax burden that’s placed on our county residents. We’ve passed millions of dollars in spending reductions that aren’t gonna significantly impact the levels of service for our residents. I think there are millions more dollars that we could have done, but unfortunately, did not have the support to move forward.” The County Council previously approved a $20 car tab tax increase and a 0.1% sales tax to pay for public safety such as law enforcement, courts, prosecutor’s office and public defender’s office.