Recent Stories with tag chamber of commerce

Several months ago, writes the Seattle Chamber's Christine Donegan, Seattle employers issued a joint appeal to Mayor McGinn and City Council to avoid raising taxes to balance the 2010 and 2011 budgets. As a follow up, twenty-two business organizations have issued a letter to the mayor and council with specific suggestions for balancing the budget without negatively impacting employers or essential city services.

Mayor Mike McGinn, introducing The Maldives at Bumbershoot

Dear Mayor McGinn,

In April, over two dozen representatives of Seattle employers wrote to urge you to refrain from increasing existing taxes and proposing new taxes to balance the City’s 2010 and 2011 budgets. We believe that burdening employers with additional taxes will slow economic recovery in Seattle. As a follow up to that letter, we write to offer specific suggestions for balancing the City’s 2011 budget that will preserve jobs and critical City services.

As you are well aware, the City of Seattle faces a projected $67 million shortfall between planned expenditures and anticipated revenues in 2011, with $11 million less in revenues than previously predicted. However, the City is projected to collect more General Fund revenue in 2010 than was collected in 2009 and this trend is anticipated to continue through 2012.

Between the year 2001 and 2011, General Fund revenues will have grown by 45 percent, 18 percent when adjusting for inflation. The City’s budget shortfall is not driven by decreasing revenues, but rather as a result of expenses that are increasing at a rate greater than revenues and a rate greater than Seattle’s Consumer Price Index (CPI).... (more)