CITY OF SEATTLE
ORDINANCE __________________
COUNCIL BILL __________________
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AN ORDINANCE imposing an excise tax on the sale or exchange of certain capital assets in Seattle; adding a new Chapter 5.66 to the Seattle Municipal Code; and adding a new Section 5.45.050 to the Seattle Municipal Code.
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WHEREAS, the Department of Housing and Urban Development considers households rent burdened if more than 30 percent of their income is spent on housing costs such as rent and utilities; and
WHEREAS, the Department of Housing and Urban Development considers households severely rent burdened if more than 50 percent of their income is spent on housing costs such as rent and utilities; and
WHEREAS, according to the Census Bureau's annual American Community Survey in 2023, 90,700 households or 44 percent of renter households in Seattle are rent burdened; and
WHEREAS, as of August 2024, United Way reported there were approximately 5,800 Seattle residents on the wait list for rental assistance; and
WHEREAS, United Way of King County estimated it would take $10 million to clear its backlog of households waiting for rental assistance; and
WHEREAS, the city faces a significant lack of funding to support down payment assistance; and
WHEREAS, according to the Brookings Institution, Black Americans have a homeownership rate of 46.4 percent compared to 75.8 percent of white Americans; and
WHEREAS, owning a home is not just a dream but a critical step toward creating and preserving wealth that can be passed down through generations; and
WHEREAS, according to the US Census Bureau, King County had a 61.5 percent homeownership rate, while Black residents had only a 28 percent homeownership rate; and
WHEREAS, homeownership is a key way to build intergenerational wealth and racial covenants, and redlining restricted the ability of nonwhite residents of Seattle to buy homes; and
WHEREAS, according to the Congressional Research Service, homeownership increases the tax base and enco...
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