Seattle Head Tax

Supporters and opponents of Seattleâ€™s controversial new head tax gather Tuesday at City Hall before the City Council plans to vote in a special meeting to repeal the tax.
Photographed on June 12, 2018. 206637

July 13, 2018 at 1:00 pm

‘Show of force’: Business-backed opponents of Seattle head tax outspent supporters 2 to 1

Campaigns for and against the levy spent more than $600,000 combined, contesting a referendum that likely will not take place.

July 3, 2018 at 5:58 pm

Second lawsuit alleges Seattle City Council head-tax vote broke open-meetings law

Arthur West, a perpetual litigant in open-government cases, quietly filed his lawsuit against the city on June 14 — the same day that Seattle-based attorney...

Local News

Council President Bruce Harrell, left and Councilmembers Mike O’Brien, Kshama Sawant, and Teresa Mosqueda listen to testimony during the council meeting on June 12, 2018.

June 28, 2018 at 6:13 pm

Seattle offers $4,001 to settle lawsuit claiming head-tax vote broke open-meetings law

The offer by City Attorney Pete Holmes would cover any civil fines for breaking the law, but the city wouldn’t admit that it actually did...

Supporters and opponents of Seattle‚Äôs controversial new head tax gather Tuesday at City Hall before the City Council plans to vote in a special meeting to repeal the tax.
Photographed on June 12, 2018. 206637

June 24, 2018 at 6:00 am

With Seattle’s head tax dead, business lobbyists set sights on City Council elections

The tax was supposed to raise $47 million per year for low-income housing and homeless services. The lobbyists who helped kill the measure want to...

Fred Mendoza, Washington State Public Stadium Authority Board Chair, from left, Adrian Hanauer, Seattle Sounders FC owner, Jenny Durkan, Seattle mayor, Dow Constantine, King County Executive and Chuck Arnold, Chief Operating Officer Seattle Seahawks and First & Goal Inc. talk during a press conference about the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Seattle’s Pioneer Square neighborhood Wednesday, June 13, 2018.
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June 17, 2018 at 6:00 am

Task force on homelessness looks to restart after Seattle head-tax debate

A stalled King County committee on homelessness looks to a post head-tax world.

June 15, 2018 at 2:23 pm

Seattle City Council is responsible for the head tax fiasco | David Horsey cartoon

The Seattle City Council repealed the $275 per worker head tax after the referendum campaign received enough signatures for the November ballot.

Opinion

June 15, 2018 at 1:39 pm

10 take-aways from the head-tax debacle | Editorial

It was an uprising of fed-up citizens, not Amazon strong-arming City Hall. Now it’s time to keep up the pressure.

The Seattle City Council listens to testimony about how people feel about the proposed Head Tax during a special council meeting on Tuesday.
Photographed at City Council Chambers on June 12, 2018. 206637

June 15, 2018 at 6:00 am

Repealing head tax, Seattle avoids walking into the propeller | Jon Talton

Amazon didn't bully the city into rescinding this destructive policy. The City Council prompted a popular revolt — but not the one its most extreme...

June 14, 2018 at 10:53 am

Lawsuit accuses Seattle of violating open-meetings law before head-tax repeal vote; anti-tax campaign turns in signatures just in case

Three attorneys contend each of the named city officials be fined and that the city bear their legal costs; city attorney says council complied with...

Local News

Council President Bruce Harrell, right, listens to testimony during the council meeting on June 12.
The vote to kill the $275 per-employee tax represents a victory for Amazon and the other big businesses that would have paid it and have been funding a referendum campaign against it.

June 13, 2018 at 6:00 am

Lots of blame for Seattle's head-tax debacle. Except where it belongs | Danny Westneat

The City Council implicitly acknowledged its head-tax plan was a loser when members voted to repeal it. But they couldn't admit it, instead blaming about...

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