A November ballot fight in Tacoma over renter protections has widened into a broader political contest over rental policy, pitting tenants seeking tougher safeguards against landlord organizations with far deeper campaign resources.
That contest has drawn in Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson, who joined a Seattle fundraiser backing the initiative.
Here’s what to know
If approved, Safe Homes For All would fund enforcement with a per-unit rental license fee, require Tacoma landlords to bargain with tenant unions, and add penalties for violating housing regulations, KNKX reported.
Tacoma For All has reported raising $155,000, compared with $247,460 reported by the Rental Housing Association of Washington. The station reported a large share of the opposition money came from an LLC linked to Seattle-based Goodman Real Estate, which gave $175,000 in August to the association’s political action committee…