The Brief
- Seattle’s projected budget deficit has grown to approximately $488 million over the next three years due to inflation and lower-than-expected property and sales tax revenues.
- To balance the budget, Mayor Wilson is exploring both spending cuts and new revenue options—such as a local capital gains tax or an expansion of the “JumpStart” payroll tax—noting that “nothing is off the table” ahead of her September budget proposal.
- A Downtown Seattle Association report warns that the payroll tax has already contributed to a loss of 30,000 downtown jobs since 2020, pointing out that Seattle’s office property values dropped 48% while neighboring Bellevue’s values rose 7%.
SEATTLE – Seattle is facing a tough financial outlook as the city’s budget shortfall has grown larger than originally projected, with the latest deficit coming to nearly half a billion dollars over the next several years.
The budget deficit has grown about $100 million more than initial projections, now standing around $488 million over the next three years.
Only six months into the job, it is a financial challenge that Mayor Wilson inherited, but now her problem to solve.…