{"id":578264,"date":"2010-05-25T15:00:01","date_gmt":"2010-05-25T19:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/seattletimes.nwsource.com\/html\/northwestvoices\/2011949459_kingcountycouncilproposessalestax.html?syndication=rss"},"modified":"2010-05-25T15:00:01","modified_gmt":"2010-05-25T19:00:01","slug":"king-county-council-proposes-sales-tax","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/578264","title":{"rendered":"King County Council proposes sales tax"},"content":{"rendered":"

Let me decide<\/strong><\/p>\n

Editor, The Times:<\/p>\n

It appears that the King County Council has decided that the public doesn\u2019t know what it wants \u2014only the Council knows [\u201cSales-tax proposal in jeopardy,\u201d page one, May 22].<\/p>\n

Most of the discussion from council members regarding why they would not allow King County residents to vote on a sales-tax increase revolves around the wrong issue. They talk as if they are deciding if we should increase the sales tax and do not talk about whether we should decide if we should increase the sales tax.<\/p>\n

It is a subtle but very important distinction.<\/p>\n

I am wise enough to know what I think is right. I also know that public safety is important to me. The County Council apparently thinks I do not know what I want or what is important to me.<\/p>\n

These same County Council members say the county is spending more than it is making, so that has to change. Who do they think have been in charge of spending decisions over the last few years?<\/p>\n

Look in the mirror, County Council, and you will see who is responsible for that dilemma \u2014 yet you think for some reason you are going to solve this before we have no more police officers, prosecutors or judges?<\/p>\n

My experience living in King County says differently. By my rough calculation, the average tenure of a council member is 10 years.<\/p>\n

I suspect council members would make the same decisions they have for the many terms they have served on the council. Why don\u2019t you let me decide this time?<\/p>\n

\u2014 Steve Tucker, Seattle<\/em><\/p>\n

Modest sales-tax increase for families<\/strong><\/p>\n

King County Council has made many difficult cuts to our county\u2019s budget during this recession \u2014 more than $209 million has been cut already, bringing our county\u2019s general budget down from a high of $837 million in 2008 to $628 million. That is a 25 percent cut, which is serious belt-tightening by most standards.<\/p>\n

Yet, we still face further deficits \u2014as much as $140 million over the next two years. Given the reality that more than 75 percent of the county budget supports our law enforcement and justice system, the bulk of any additional cuts would come in those areas.<\/p>\n

Unlike a family that often has no choice but to keep reducing discretionary expenses in tough times, our government\u2019s justice system is not a discretionary choice. It is the cornerstone of our sense of fairness and security. We must find the funding to provide it.<\/p>\n

The County Council has an option available to prevent these continued deep cuts: It could ask the voters to consider a modest sales-tax increase of $40 per family per year, or just 11 cents a day.<\/p>\n

Before we go down the road to possible draconian cuts to the justice system, don\u2019t we owe it to ask the voters first whether or not they want to increase revenues? If they say no, the County Council must act and we would face the consequences of reduced police, prosecutors and a strained court system.<\/p>\n

As advocates for access to justice, the County Council should not hide behind the process and should put the question directly to the people.<\/p>\n

\u2014 James Andrus, King County Bar Association president, Seattle<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Let me decide Editor, The Times: It appears that the King County Council has decided that the public doesn\u2019t know what it wants \u2014only the Council knows [\u201cSales-tax proposal in jeopardy,\u201d page one, May 22]. Most of the discussion from council members regarding why they would not allow King County residents to vote on a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2861,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-578264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/578264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2861"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=578264"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/578264\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=578264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=578264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=578264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}