ELECTION 2023: Veterans, Seniors, Human Services Levy proposed for renewal vote in August

This is the last year of the current King County-wide Veterans, Seniors, and Human Services Levy, approved by voters in 2017 as the renewal and renaming of the Veterans and Human Services Levy, which was originally passed in 2005. Today, County Executive Dow Constantine announced he plans to ask voters to renew the levy on the August 1st primary ballot. From the one-sheet that accompanied the announcement:

If renewed, the levy will:
• Fund permanent supportive housing, specifically for veterans
• Keep reducing veteran homelessness
• Expand investments in the human services workforce
• Double current funding for senior centers
• Maintain access to counseling and mental health supports for veterans and seniors
• Dedicate King County staff to strengthen resident and resource connections
• Deepen community-centered programming for survivors of gender-based violence

Here’s what today’s announcement says the money’s done since the most-recent vote:

Veterans

-Served more than 27,000 veterans, servicemembers, and their families with fewer eligibility barriers than many federal programs
-Contributed to a 40 percent reduction in veteran homelessness
-Provided more than 260 veterans, servicemembers, and family members with over 15,000 mental health counseling sessions
-Built 234 units of affordable housing for veterans and their families

Seniors

-Funded 39 senior centers across the county
-Served more than 100,000 seniors through expanded senior programming

Build Resiliency

-Launched DVHopeline, a countywide, 24-hour multi-lingual and multimodal domestic violence hotline, that received 16,000 calls or texts and referred nearly 7,000 of those callers to additional support
-Funded mobile advocacy services for more than 1,200 survivors of gender-based violence
Helped build more than 1,000 units of affordable housing and 198 new shelter beds
-Funded 55 agencies with 675 bonuses to support workforce retention

The new proposal would raise $581 million over six years and, Constantine’s office says, would cost the owner of a “median-priced home” $83 a year, at 10 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, which is the same rate as the current version. The King County Council will have to vote by May to get the renewal on the August ballot.

Question Authority February 17, 2023 (5:33 pm)

Veterans (myself included) should never lack for support due to our service to this nation, the government has failed us time and time again. It shouldn’t come down to local voters for funding when we served the US Federal Government not King County or Seattle

WS Res February 17, 2023 (7:16 pm)

Hear, hear!
Josh February 17, 2023 (10:15 pm)

So youre saying that because you personally do not benefit from this levy and that because the federal government support is inadequate then we should vote no on this levy and not support our neighbors because it should be somebody elses problem?
- Anne February 18, 2023 (8:16 am)
  
  Who are you responding to?
- AMD February 18, 2023 (8:55 am)
  
  I didn’t get that at all. Question Authority’s post seems like they’re in favor of the funding, but is lamenting how dysfunctional the system is that the local governments have to clean up after the feds. That was my takeaway from their post.
- Question Authority February 18, 2023 (9:53 am)
  
  Where and when did I say it wouldn’t benefit me and where and when did I say vote NO? I shared an opinion about fiscal responsibility and you speculated my voting preferences, which is simply presumptuous on your part.
- Question Authority February 18, 2023 (11:14 am)
  
  Where did I imply that?

anonyme February 18, 2023 (5:55 am)

Question Authority is absolutely correct. I’d also like to point out that this levy is calculatedly deceptive in its inclusion of ‘seniors’ in the title, probably to garner more votes. The last time this passed, senior services were CUT pretty dramatically. So-called ‘human services’ should not rely on a levy. I am reminded of the last libraries levy that ironically included a large percentage of wholly unrelated human services. This system is extremely flawed.

Millie February 18, 2023 (1:33 pm)

I do not wish anyone to get upset in respect to the worthiness of this levy. Merely asking, “What is the median price of a home since a statement was made levy would remain $83 (or 10 cents per $1,000) for a median price home.

AMD February 19, 2023 (6:21 am)

The median price of a home in Seattle is just under 800k. This is a renewal at the existing rate, so a yes vote would not increase your taxes.
- flimflam February 19, 2023 (2:24 pm)
  
  Yes but a “no” vote would decrease them – not that I think that will happen. These levies that are set to expire never really seem to do so, they just get replaced with a new one.

Scarlett February 19, 2023 (11:11 am)

(Small clarification: Though the the rate of .10 per $1,000 of assessed value would remain the same, there would be a slight increase due to higher home values.)

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