On Tuesday, September 24, Mayor Bruce Harrell announced his proposed 2025-26 city budget's plans to decrease Seattle's $250 million deficit. The $8.3 billion proposal prioritizes keeping city services and workers employed but sacrifices social assistance, Green New Deal programs, and educational public broadcasting.

"My guiding principle as mayor is that my obligation to you, the people of Seattle, is to do our best to spend every dollar we have toward the needs of the city and its people in a responsible and efficient and effective way," Harrell said.

"We don't have the luxury of pie-in-the-sky reimagining of our budget based on the hope that our state's regressive tax system will magically change," Harrell added.

The mayor's proposal avoids cuts to city staffing by reallocating funds from the JumpStart payroll expense tax away from low-income communities. The tax, which was passed by the Seattle City Council in 2020, affects employers who have more than $8,511,281 in annual payroll expenses and at least one employee with a yearly compensation of $182,385 or more. The tax does not apply to grocery businesses.

The JumpStart tax was initially proposed during the pandemic, when the largest corporations in Seattle profited while low-income and marginalized communities suffered the most. Most of the tax (62%) goes toward building affordable rental housing, housing and services for community-focused acquisition development, and program support funds to address discriminatory housing policies and practices. The rest goes toward immigrant and refugee services, expanding grocery vouchers, and assistance to small businesses and childcare centers. In previous years, the tax has been so successful, it often outperforms its projected revenue. The excess is frequently used to balance the budget.

Instead of the funds generated by this tax helping Seattle's most vulnerable, a significant portion will pay for government employees and programs, but it still isn't enough to close the deficit. According to the proposed budget, 159 full-time city positions will be eliminated, most of which are in HR and IT. Although the City Council has approved the transfer of excess funds in the past, this proposed transfer is expected to be much higher than previous ones, requiring legislation that modifies the original JumpStart rules.

Service providers, labor leaders, and advocates are unhappy with the new proposal and have issued a joint statement urging the mayor to pass new progressive tax legislation instead of redirecting JumpStart funds. "This structural shortfall requires a structural solution, not stopgap measures that will simply kick the problem another year down the road," they said.

Cuts and increases
When money is tight, arts and culture are usually the first programs to go. To balance the budget, Harrell also proposed eliminating $1.6 million for the Seattle Channel. This will cut several beloved public programs, including Book Lust with Nancy Pearl, Art Zone with Nancy Guppy, and City Inside/Out with Brian Callanan.

With an emphasis on local arts, culture, and entertainment, the Seattle Channel is one of the country's highest-quality public television stations; however, with a major cut in funding, many viewers worry the channel's quality will drastically tank. "This will reduce programming down to basic City Council and Executive coverage," Harrell said in the proposal.

Former city council members Nick Licata and Tom Rasmussen fear this cut to the Seattle Channel will limit the flow of information and the reach of independent local news. "We urge the Council not to cut Seattle Channel services but rather to initiate an open discussion between the public and the city on how to sustain a vibrant Seattle Channel," they said in a joint letter to the council. "This will give all stakeholders a voice and ensure a thoughtful approach to budgeting the channel in the future."

Despite cuts to arts, culture, low-income assistance, and Green New Deal programs, Harrell's budget proposes a $400 million increase over last year's. If approved, it will provide $392 million for administration costs, and a $121 million increase for public safety.

The public safety budget includes a $60 million increase to the Seattle Police Department, including $10 million specifically allocated toward increasing the number of officers located downtown. Harrell has also proposed $2.3 million to expand the operations of the Unified Care Team, the program that addresses and removes homeless encampments.

The City Council has two months to review and amend the budget for the next fiscal year. "It's crucial that we center both fiscal responsibility and prioritize the investments the people of our city depend on: improving public safety, creating affordable housing, and addressing homelessness," Council Budget Chair Dan Strauss said. "We can and we must do both."