Reckless policies which resulted in businesses fleeing Seattle, are now forcing residential taxpayers to pay higher taxes.

In just four years, King County homeowners have gone from paying 65% of the property taxes collected to now being responsible for over 80%. Ironically, this is primarily due to progressive policies which supporters claimed would make wealthy corporations “pay their share.”

In the summer of 2020, when Governor Jay Inslee’s COVID restrictions were most severe, thousands of liberal activists ignored social distancing directives to gather together in Seattle to protest the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer. The ongoing protests, many violent, demanded radical changes which progressive leaders asserted would bring equality to people of color and force corporations to pay higher taxes to fund more government programs.

Liberal politicians at both the local and state levels responded to this political violence by immediately passing laws which cut police budgets, placed severe restrictions on officers apprehending suspects, lifted restrictions on drug use and homeless encampments, and raised taxes on businesses.

The predictable results of these radical measures were that violent crime, homelessness, and drug overdose deaths all skyrocketed (ironically, hurting communities of color the hardest). In many Seattle neighborhoods (especially Downtown and the International District), this severely impacted retail businesses as both their customers and employees felt unsafe due to illegal activities and unsanitary conditions.

Many street level businesses were forced to close their doors as owners felt they could not operate under these conditions. Boarded up windows became the norm in many retail districts. The fleeing of small businesss and large retailers continues today as Orvis is leaving the Belltown neighborhood and the Cheesecake Factory announced on March 7^th it was closing its large restaurant on 6^th Avenue in May after 23 years in business at that location.

Many large office tenants also reassessed keeping their downtown Seattle locations once COVID work restrictions were lifted in 2021. Many chose to close or relocate due to the unsafe working conditions for their employees, while many did so because of new business taxes aimed at successful companies.

As the result, vacancy rates in Seattle’s downtown core has grown from 5.9% in Quarter 1 of 2020 to a record-breaking 32.3% in Quarter 4 of 2024. This unbelievable 547% increase in empty spaces has resulted in a plummeting of property values of commercial spaces.

At the same time, restrictive building regulations have caused a housing shortage, triggering residential property values to rapidly increase. Because of this lack of supply, the assessed price of an average home in Washington State is now 61.3% higher than the median priced home in the country ($690,701 in WA compared to $428,215 in USA).

The combination of commercial property values dropping while residential properties increase, has resulted in homeowners now being responsible for 83% of the property taxes collected by King County.  King County Assessor John Wilson stated this figure is normally around 65%.

Thus, the progressives’ tax measures aimed at making corporations pay more have actually backfired as successful employers have moved their high paying jobs out of Seattle – forcing middle- and lower-income residents to pay a higher percentage of the tax bill.

(Remember apartment owners pay their higher property taxes through increasing their tenants’ rent.)

Just like how reckless “equity” measures resulted in more minorities and lower-income residents becoming victims of crimes, homeless, or dying from a drug overdose, the “tax the rich” policies are, in reality, “tax the poor and middle-class.”

This is the true legacy of the 2020 Seattle riots – Progressive/Far Left  politicians recklessly rushed to enact rioters’ demands without vetting proposals or considering alternative points of view.

Disappointingly, those who supported these failed policies have not learned from their mistakes as they continue to push radical solutions in Olympia that predictably will make matters worse. House Democrats have passed a “rent control” measure (HB 1217) which will reduce housing supply even further (remember Washington is already 1 million homes shy of meeting demand) and will increase rental rates.

On the Senate side, the Democrats have given their union campaign contributors passage of a bill (SB 5041) which will give them unemployment insurance for striking workers. Yet, this will lead to fewer jobs coming to our state. and likely many jobs will leave.

It is all very predictable. The same political leadership which believes rent control will magically reduce housing costs and a job-killing measure will help workers, are the same politicians whose attacks on “corporate greed” caused a higher tax burden for individuals and families. This will likely continue as long as political slogans are more important than results and facts.