Democrats are pushing massive property-tax hike bill this session

It seems like every year the Democrats, who have voting majorities in the Senate and House, in Olympia introduce legislation to raise or create taxes, no matter how much revenue the state is already collecting from you and other hard-working taxpayers.

The Ds are at again this session. The latest proposal from the other side of the aisle that should cause all of us to hide our wallets is Senate Bill 5770, the Senate Democrats’ very costly and long-term property tax increase proposal.

The version of Senate Bill 5770 that received a public hearing in our Senate Ways and Means Committee on Jan. 18 would triple the allowable growth rate of annual local property-tax collections in Washington. Currently, local governments can collect 1% more annually in property tax, plus any revenues attributable to the value of new construction, without having to seek voter approval. The Democrats’ bill would lift the 1% lid to 3% without voter consent. It would apply only to any local property-tax levy, not a state property tax-levy.

The state Department of Revenue estimates this version of SB 5770 would increase taxes by a jaw-dropping $6 billion over the next 10 years, with the compounding effect of the increase continuing to escalate over time.

The vast majority of people who testified in committee opposed it. In fact, 7,576 people signed in against this bill, while only 514 signed in for it. Another 203 people signed in as “other.”

When more than 91 percent of the people commenting on a piece of legislation are against it, you would hope that Senate Democrat leadership will sit up and take notice and maybe decide not to let this bad bill move forward after all.

Unfortunately, if past controversial bills with strong public opposition are any indication, Senate Democrats might very well pass SB 5770 from Ways and Means and advance it to the Senate floor. If that happens and you want to voice your opposition to this bill, you have a couple of options. One is to contact Senate Democratic Leader Andy Billig of Spokane and let him know you oppose SB 5770. His email address is andy.billig@leg.wa.gov and his Olympia phone number is 360-786-7604. You may also contact Sen. Jamie Pedersen of Seattle, the prime sponsor of SB 5770, at jamie.pedersen@leg.wa.gov or 360-786-7628.

If you missed watching the public hearing on this costly proposal, go to tvw.org to watch it online.

Increasing property taxes would make the affordability crisis in our state worse. Many families already are struggling to keep up with rising prices for food, gas and other necessary items. In fact, Seattle’s FOX 13 television station just reported Washington is the fourth most expensive state to buy groceries in the United States, according to a recent study from HelpAdvisor.com. The article said the average cost of weekly groceries here is $287.67, ranking our state below only California, Nevada and Mississippi.

The last thing homeowners and property owners need is a more expensive property-tax bill thanks to another law coming out of Olympia.

Also look at the challenges of homelessness and a lack of available housing and a lack of affordable housing in many communities across Washington. If this costly proposal becomes law, it will make housing even less available and affordable, which likely will cause more people in our state to become homeless. Do legislative Democrats and Gov. Jay Inslee really want to take that risk?

Raising the 1% cap on the annual property-tax growth rate would ignore the will of Washington voters. I remember well how in 2001 nearly 58% of voters approved Initiative 747. That was decisive, yet Democrats want to charge ahead and act like I-747 never even happened or the reasonable 1% growth limit is no longer wanted by voters.

Democrats are claiming that the additional property-tax money from this proposal would pay for better law enforcement and more services for children with disabilities. If Democrats are really concerned about law enforcement, they can start by easing the restrictions on vehicle pursuits (although I-2113 may take care of that). And they should use existing state revenue to support students with disabilities, as part of our duty to provide for schools.

If this costly and unnecessary bill is brought to a decision, either in Ways and Means or on the Senate floor, I will be a resounding “no” vote.

–– Sen. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, represents the 9th Legislative District.