Kerby Anderson

Liberals are sleepless in Seattle. Apparently, there is little rest for Seattle progressives who want to right what they perceive as economic injustice. Three years ago, the Seattle City Council decided to incrementally raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Employers ended up cutting thousands of jobs and cutting hours for those who remained on the payroll. Well, the Seattle City Council is at it again. The council members unanimously voted to approve a new “head tax” that imposed a $275-per-worker charge on companies that make over $20 million a year. If that amount seems large, it is worth remembering that the original bill called for a $500-per-worker tax. The additional funds are supposed to help address the homelessness crisis in the city by providing housing and health services. But these politicians might want to focus on the reasons behind the homeless surge. After all, homelessness in the state has decreased while homelessness in Seattle has exploded. It might have something to do with all the policies that make housing in Seattle and living in the city more expensive. It will be interesting to see how the big tech companies of Amazon and Microsoft respond to this “tax the rich” scheme aimed at them. In the past, they have been willing to accept various policies because they share some of the values of the council members who are social justice warriors. But that may only go so far. Amazon had announced a halt in construction but now says that it will resume construction. But the statement also said they were apprehensive about the future because of the Seattle City Council’s hostility toward big businesses. I have noticed that in the last two decades, Amazon, Boeing, and other businesses have been building outside of the state of Washington. I suspect that future actions by the Seattle City Council might hasten Amazon’s departure.