Initiative 747
2001
2001Fire Districts, Libraries, Pools, Parks, and Local Communities Feel the Pain
Ballot Summary: Initiative Measure No. 747 concerns limiting property tax increases. This measure requires state and local governments to limit property tax levy increases to 1% per year, unless an increase greater than this limit is approved by the voters at an election.
Perspective: After two years, Tim Eyman finally hired attorneys to draft Initiative 747 - Rob McKenna and Jim Johnson, now state office holders. The initiative withstood legal challenges for several years, but was finally declared unconstitutional in June 2006.
At the Ballot Box: Succeeded
YES:826,258 57.55%
826,258 57.55%NO: 609,266 42.44%
609,266 42.44%Court & Legislative Action: Although the initiative's success and stability prevented it from being thrown out completely, opponents went to court and argued the successful tax-limitation measure had actually been written by lawyers at a state agency- the Code Reviser's Office. They won a round in their legal battle in May 2002.
A Thurston County Superior Court judge ruled that the records of any work the state code reviser's office did on the initiative are public documents under state open-records law. Information and text in this report was taken from the Seattle Times Local News Digest on May 21st 2002. View the report by clicking here.
Court Action UPDATE: Over four years after the passage of Initiative 747, a group of nonprofits and Whitman County sued in King County Superior Court to have I-747 thrown out. On June 13th, 2006, King County Superior Court Judge Mary Roberts agreed and declared the initiative unconstituional, enjoining the state from enforcing I-747. The state Supreme Court is now hearing an appeal and will issue a ruling later in 2007.
Effects of I-747
Initiative 747 added to the woes of local governments throughout the state upon its enactment in 2001. A series of painful, revebrating cuts began thereafter, proving that tax cuts do have real consequences. Initiative 747 set a limit on the amount of new property taxes that can be levied each each year by local governments, making a 1% cap the law.
Initiative 864, Eyman's 2004 proposal, called for huge across the board cuts- millions of dollars lost in a 25% slash. After Initiative 747, Seattle's mayor at the time, Paul Schell, asked the City Council to mandate the following cuts in 2002:
- Closing the Japanese Garden at the Washington Arboretum Park and the Discovery Park visitors center on Mondays;
- Reducing lifeguards at pools and closing them on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents Day, Veterans Day and the day after Thanksgiving;
- Reducing lifeguards' hours and eliminating a free swimming lesson program;
- Closing all but six community centers an hour early on weekdays and entirely on Sundays. Not affected are Green Lake, Rainier Beach, Rainier, Garfield, Miller and Hiawatha community centers.
Tax cuts have real consequences. This fact seems to be lost on many of Washington's voters, especially those in Eastern Washington, who have approved four Eyman tax-slashing initiatives at the ballot. The Seattle P-I Editorial Board said of Initiative 747:
"Washington voters are being asked to join in an act of political revenge - not against foreign terrorists but against their own local elected officials.... according to the conservative Washington Policy Center, in 2001 local officials in 34 of the state's 39 counties and in 17 major cities kept property tax levy increases to the 2.61 inflation rate or less....."
"...with the state facing its own potential $1 billion budget shortfall, it will likely be unable to continue buffering many of these same communities from the impacts of I-695."
-Seattle P-I, "I-747 hurts rural areas the most" October 24th, 2001
Libraries across Washington State depend on property taxes for 95% of their revenue. 70% of Washingtonians use libraries, according to the Washington Library Association. The public, in addition to books, now demands and requires technology services- often, to be provided for free. The three main expense areas, according to Washington Library Association, are staffing, library materials, and information technology. There is no "fat" to cut here. The cuts are direct- and they're painful. Staff get laid off, less materials are available, and free internet disappears. Read more about Initiative 747 and libraries.
Projected Losses, I-747. According to the state Department of Revenue: "The state will experience revenue loss of $34,428,000 for the 2001-2003 biennium. Local governments will lose $115,246,000 over the same period. Loss to the state property tax will total $226,923,000 for the 2005-2007 biennium while losses to local taxing districts will total $571,496,000.
The state loss from I-747 for 2004 alone is projected to be $48,753,000. Local municipalities will lose $148,415,000 in 2004 alone.
Initiative 7762002
2002An Assault on Home Rule and Another Blow to Transportation
Ballot Summary: Initiative Measure No. 776 concerns state and local government charges on motor vehicles. This measure would require license tab fees to be $30 per year for motor vehicles, including light trucks. Certain local-option vehicle excise taxes and fees used for roads and transit would be repealed.
Perspective: Permanent Defense fought this initiative in partnership with a coalition of organizations as part of the NO on I-776 campaign. It was later challenged in court by a broad representation of the organizations that fought it in the election. Three preliminary court victories were won, but in October 2003, the initiative was upheld by the Washington Supreme Court. However, I-776 did not stop Sound Transit's Central Link light rail project.
At the Ballot Box: Succeeded
YES:901,478 51.47%
901,478 51.47% NO: 849,986 48.53%
849,986 48.53% Court & Legislative Action: The initiative's attempt to knock down Sound Transit failed because of a bond issue- voters can't repeal taxes pledged to pay off debts- so Sound Transit kept its tax. Pierce and King Counties, Sound Transit, the City of Tacoma, individual taxpayers, and environmental organizations sued to stop Initiative 776 and wipe the whole thing out. The lawsuit was eventually unsuccessful. Read more in: I-776 sets bad precedent for home rule.
Effects of I-776
Initiative 776 made problems even worse by taking away local MVET which was levied by four counties: King, Snohomish, Pierce, and Douglas. I-776 crippled local road funding up and down Puget Sound. Tim Eyman's native hometown of Mukilteo, in fact, lost $160,000 from street maintenance funding in 2003 (due to I-776) and had to cut back on popular events such as the Lighthouse Festival. In Lake Forest Park, King County, $120,000 for street funding was lost.
Thanks to Initiative 776, work on each of King County's major freeways, including SR 520, Interstate 405 and Interstate 90, was axed. An estimated $40,000,000 of the state's two-year highway budget was killed by Initiative 776.
Twenty five projects on the Eastside of Seattle, all totalling 9.7 million, are now under the chopping block- thanks to Initiative 776. Most of the money helped to fund road construction. Now, construction of new roads will simply be halted. The shortsighted vision of I-695 and I-776 has done disastrous things to our tax structure.
"AMONG THE PROJECTS AT RISK ARE EXPANSION OF COAL CREEK PARKWAY AND NOVELTY HILL ROAD ON THE EASTSIDE, AND AN IMPROVED INTERSECTION OF BENSON ROAD AND CARR ROAD NEAR RENTON...."
-Seattle Times, "Budget revamp needed because of I-776", Nov. 13th 2003
Links: Learn more about the woes Initiative 776 added to local governments and the state of Washington:
Initiative 8922004
2004Ballot Summary: Initiative Measure 892 concerns authorizing additional “electronic scratch ticket machines” to reduce property taxes. This measure would authorize licensed non-tribal gambling establishments to operate the same type and number of machines as tribal governments, with a portion of tax revenue generated used to reduce state property taxes.
Perspective: Permanent Defense fought this initiative in partnership with a coalition of organizations, including the NO ON I-892 Campaign. The campaign sought to spread the word that Initiative 892's massive expansion of gambling was harmful to Washington State's communities. PD members distributed literature, yard signs, and buttons across the state. The campaign was a complete success as voters defeated Initiative 892 in a landslide and handed Tim Eyman his worst political defeat ever.
At the Ballot Box: Failed Overwhelmingly
YES1,069,41438.45%
1,069,41438.45%NO 1,711,78561.54%
1,711,78561.54%Court & Legislative Action: No court action was required because the initiative failed.
Effects: There were no effects because the initiative didn't pass.
A LOOK AT RECENT RIGHT WING INITIATIVES ON THE BALLOT
A HISTORY OF DECEPTION AND ITS CONSEQUENCES
Years ago, Tim Eyman seized on a feeling of apathy towards taxation in the state and convinced a majority of Washingtonians to vote for I-695. Tim turned his success into a highly profitable business and has continued to file initiatives every year. This section illustrates how the results of right-wing tax cutting initiatives deeply affect every level of government and harm communities across Washington State.
© 2007 Permanent Defense
Paid for by Permanent Defense PAC
A Northwest Progressive Institute organization
Post Office Box 264, Redmond, WA 98073-0264
