EVERETT, AUG. 6: Preliminary ballots are due for all of Snohomish County today, Tuesday, Aug. 6. Everett is looking at two important measures, one being Proposition 1, a levy lid lift, something the city hasn’t done in 23 years.
Prop 1 would increase Everett’s property levy rate to $2.19/$1,000 of assessed value, roughly $28 more per month for a $500,000 home. If passed the measure would help fund public safety, park maintenance, libraries, animal shelters, street maintenance and more. The city states that the 20-year budget deficit was caused by the state’s 1% cap on property tax levy increases. They say that because of this, the levy doesn’t keep up with inflation costs.
The city released frequently asked questions about Prop 1 that they received during their informational sessions in July.
Q: “Is City of Everett Proposition 1 the same ballot measure as the Port of Everett Proposition 1?”
A: Proposition 1 is different than the Port of Everett’s boundary expansion. These are two different measures.
Q: “Why is this called a one-time, permanent levy lid lift?”
A: There are two types of levy lid lifts according to the city. A single-year and a multi-year option. The proposed measure asks for a one-time “bump” above 1% (blue on the graph) for a year. Then in the fourth bar, the 1% cap is back, meaning Everett will go back to the 1% lift of the base levy.
Q: “What does 44% mean?” “How much will this actually cost me?”
A: The city has estimated the proposed increase at $28 per month for an average home with an assessed value of $500k, or an increase of about 7.8% of ones total property tax payment. To figure out what this levy lid lift would cost your household, see here. You can also divide your property’s assessed value by 1,000 and multiply by $0.67 to find an estimate of the increase for your property.
The 44% increase refers to the city rate which would be $2.19 per $1,000 instead of $1.52. This applies to taxes paid to the city of Everett, not taxpayers’ total bill.
Q: “If City of Everett Proposition 1 is not approved by the voters, how will this impact police and fire services?”
A: The city says that even though there are no anticipated staffing cuts for police and fire departments if the lift doesn’t pass, other city departments that can’t get funding will impact police and fire workloads.
“Our police and fire departments regularly work with and rely upon staff from other departments…” the Q&A reads.
The fire department has had to use their equipment longer than the typical life span, to delay the cost of replacements. The attribute to inflation and the inability to ask for above the 1% increase.
Q: “Since my property’s assessed value/property tax amount has increased over the years, doesn’t that mean the City of Everett has been collecting more money?”
A: The city of Everett says no. The city can only increase 1% a year according to Washington State law. Changes to your property’s property tax payment are caused by assessed value changing in comparison to other property’s value changes.
Q: “Doesn’t new construction provide the City of Everett with significantly more property tax revenue each year?”
A: The city said that new construction is not a significant source of revenue. Neither is it consistent, so the city can not rely on it.
Q: “Does the City of Everett have other sources of funding that it could use rather than asking the voters to increase the property tax levy?
A: “Cities have relatively few options for bringing in revenue to provide core services,” the city said. Besides property tax, they get revenue from sales tax, B&O tax, utility tax, and other smaller taxes and fees. They state they are at the legal limit for increasing taxes and fees, so they could not increase anything other than B&O and gambling taxes.
Q: “What has been done in the last several years to address the deficit?”
A: The city stated that voluntary separations which is when an employee chooses to leave their jobs by resigning or retiring, have saved them $3.33 million. Other significant and ongoing savings come from public/private partnerships, cutting recreation, staff benefits, eliminating vacant positions, deferring capital projects and more.
For the full list of ways the city has reduced expenses and pursued other revenue options, see here.
Opposition
Former City Council member Scott Murphy has been vocal about his opposition to the proposed levy lid lift. Murphy is running for Mayor against Franklin in 2025. “One of the reasons I am running for mayor is I believe the city’s finances are a mess…,” he said.
Murphy and Michael Swanson, former treasurer for the city have said that the city is misleading the public about what might get cut to scare voters into voting for the levy, and how the city isn’t willing to cut positions.
Mayor Franklin responded by saying Murphy is “very aware of a lot of cuts that we’ve made and how deep they went,” she said. “It’s very easy to just make statements like that, but bring forward no solutions.”
There are two rival political action committees. One is Keep Everett Affordable which fights the lid lift. The other is Lift Up Everett. As of Friday, Aug. 2, the opposing has raised $27,500. While the committee for the bill has raised $7,000.
