SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — It was top of mind last week when Spokane County Commissioners approved adding a sales tax renewal to the November ballot. It was a hard ask for some to request continuing the tax.
"It’s a little difficult for me to support this at this time because there are a lot of people hurting financially," said commissioner Al French, who ultimately voted in favor.
The county's tax of one-tenth of a percent has been in place since 1995 and voters have approved it five times.
Though this year it won't be the only tax voters in Spokane will have to decide on.
Spokane's city council also approved asking for a similar sales tax Monday night in a 5-2 vote.
Jonathan Bingle voted no to placing the ask on the ballot, in part because of an earlier council vote to permanently defer a resolution he sponsored on enforcing a camping ban.
When asked if he believes the city's new tax will pass, he was clear: no.
“There should’ve been better coordination with the county and in fairness, the county should’ve coordinated better with us when they were running their jail measure," Bingle said Tuesday. "Not a lot of collaboration right there, unfortunately. But it could be something that drags both of them down.”
Bingle also feels voters won't pass the measure because of an issue he and council member Michael Cathcart, who was the other vote against, share. They believe the wording of the proposition isn't clear enough on how the money will be spent.
The ballot will read “funding enhanced community safety and other public safety operations.”
"But what’s been described to us as a major part of community safety from this council and administration is solar panels and bike lanes. I just don’t think that’s what people have in mind when they think [of] community safety," Bingle said.
Council member Zack Zappone wouldn’t gaze into the crystal ball of how the vote could go, but he says this is a better option than a more expensive property tax council voted down in May.
"If you spend $50,000 in a year on taxable goods, so not groceries or medications, $50,000 you’d be paying $50 in taxes," Zappone explained.
He says voters have been vocal about wanting more public safety. Even if the tax passes, he says, the city has to make cuts to make up a $50 million budget deficit. If it fails, those cuts will have to come from the city's general fund, more than half of which pays for police and fire.
"Without this levy passing there will be reductions. To do any reductions in the city, we’d have to do reductions for police and fire," he said.
If the city's new tax goes through, 15% of the estimated $7.7 million earned annually would go to Spokane County.
The county’s tax would continue funding juvenile detention and jails. Last year a measure to build a new jail using a two-tenths sales tax failed. Bingle estimates if the county revisits that ask next year and the city’s tax is approved it could take away some ability to fund a new jail.
He says if the county chooses to pursue the same funding mechanism for a new jail, the county would get 60% of revenue and the remainder would be split between municipalities based on population.
"If we take our one-tenth of one percent, which we as a municipality have the legal right to do, we get 85% and 15% goes to the county. And if the county were to implement the two-tenths everywhere outside of Spokane city limits and an extra one-tenth inside city limits, they're going to get slightly less because we're getting 85% of that one percent as opposed to the county getting 60% of that two-tenths. If I'm the valley, why am I agreeing to two-tenths to give 60% of my two-tenths to the county, but the city of Spokane is getting 60% of one-tenth and then 15% of another tenth?" Bingle said. "I think it hurts our efforts with the jail region-wide.”
Ultimately voters will decide what they’re willing to pay come November 5th.
A spokesperson with Mayor Brown’s office says they plan to sit down with county leadership to discuss moving forward on achieving shared community safety goals. The administration declined to comment further. Repeated attempts to talk to county commissioners were unsuccessful.