From Newsgroup: alt.law-enforcement

from Seattle Times

one key:
businesses paid roughly two-thirds of SeattlerCOs city taxes. That
includes business taxes and their share of property, sales and other taxes.

SeattlerCOs progressive values need businesses to succeed

Amazon buildings in South Lake Union in Seattle. The more we depend on a handful of employers to fund our future, the more keeping them here and helping them grow becomes everyonerCOs business, writes the author. (Kevin Clark / The Seattle Times)

By Joe Nguy|-n Special to The Seattle Times

You can support affordable housing, strong public services and a safety
net, and still want SeattlerCOs businesses to succeed.

In fact, you should.

As Mayor Katie Wilson releases her proposed budget and the City Council
begins deliberations, Seattle needs to move past the idea that
progressive values and economic growth are opposing goals. We need both.

That means caring about how we pay for them.

Before we get lost in arguments about what to fund, what to cut and
which taxes to raise, we need to remember where the revenue comes from.

A 2023 ECONorthwest analysis of city and state data estimated that
businesses paid roughly two-thirds of SeattlerCOs city taxes. That
includes business taxes and their share of property, sales and other
taxes. The employer community already helps pay for much of the city we
depend on.

Since then, we have asked fewer companies to shoulder more of that responsibility.

When city forecasters evaluated last yearrCOs business-and-occupation tax changes, they projected the number of businesses paying would fall from
more than 22,000 to about 5,400. The independent economic report
released by Mayor WilsonrCOs office this month puts the expected number
below 5,000.

Meanwhile, just 10 companies paid nearly three-quarters of SeattlerCOs
payroll expense tax in 2025. The report warns that the social housing
tax is likely even more concentrated.

We have put more of SeattlerCOs promises on fewer shoulders. The more we depend on a handful of employers to fund our future, the more keeping
them here and helping them grow becomes everyonerCOs business.

Their jobs help families pay rent, buy groceries and build a future.
Their workers support neighborhood restaurants, shops and services. Even
if you never work for one of these organizations, the taxes they pay
help fund the city we live in.

When jobs go elsewhere, Seattle loses more than paychecks. It loses
customers, investment and money for public services.

Keeping that opportunity here takes more than asking companies to stay.
It takes making Seattle a place where their employees and customers want
to be.

That is where public safety, affordability and economic development meet.

A worker should feel safe walking to the bus after a late shift. A shop
owner should be able to welcome customers without worrying about
repeated break-ins. A family should be able to afford a home near work
and childcare.

Those are basic expectations for a good life. They are also conditions
for a thriving economy. Meeting them helps keep people and businesses
here; their success, in turn, helps fund the services that make Seattle
work.

I believe residents understand this better than our political debates
suggest. Wanting effective government, safe neighborhoods and successful businesses does not make someone less progressive. It makes them practical.

The city budget should reflect that common sense. Protect public safety,
help build more housing, make it easier to open and grow a business, and demand results from the money we already spend.

I appreciate Mayor WilsonrCOs focus on economic development and public
safety. The budget is where those priorities become real.

Businesses have a responsibility to contribute, and they are. City
leaders now have a responsibility to make Seattle a place where
businesses and workers can succeed.

Wherever you stand on taxes or economic development, we cannot fund progressive values from an empty treasury. If we want Seattle to keep
its promises, we have to help its economy thrive.

Joe Nguy|-n is president and CEO of the Seattle Metro Chamber of
Commerce, leads the regionrCOs largest business advocacy organization with 2,600 members representing 750,000 employees.
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2