Judging by their initial reaction, which ranged from stunned disbelief to unabashed anger, public officials are taking Tim Eyman’s latest initiative seriously.
Wise choice. Eyman knows the quickest route to voters’ passions is through their wallets. His Initiative 747, approved by voters in 2001, currently limits annual hikes in property taxes to 1 percent. Voters also have approved two Eyman efforts to limit car-license tabs to $30. The first one, Initiative 695, was ruled unconstitutional, but Gov. Gary Locke and the Legislature quickly enacted the tax cut on their own.
This time, Eyman’s professional initiative machine is again targeting property taxes, which he argues are far too high — some six times higher than they were in 1980. His first thought was to seek a 25 percent cut in property taxes levied by the state, but education forces would have provided powerful opposition. So instead, he’s going after local taxing districts — everything from county governments to sewer boards. The initiative he filed on Friday would cut property taxes levied by such entities by 25 percent, except for taxes that were approved by voters, like levies for schools, libraries and fire districts.
Eyman says officials who cry that the measure would force drastic cuts in public safety are using scare tactics. The sky didn’t fall under previous initiatives, and it won’t now, he says.
Nonsense, officials say. The reason local governments survived Initiative 695 is that they were bailed out by the state’s rainy-day fund, which has been tapped dry. Cuts will be painful this time around, they say, even dangerous. Police and fire protection, along with public health and critical social services, will be scaled back.
Eyman argues that taxpayers would save some $550 million under his plan, providing a needed boost to an ailing economy. And if a cash drain forces governments to better prioritize spending and improve efficiency, so much the better, he says.
Voters are left to wonder whom to believe.
Eyman’s organization has about five months to gather some 200,000 valid signatures to put the measure on the November ballot. Voters need to know — now — the pros and cons of the proposal, and as specifically as possible, its costs. Snohomish County says the initiative would cost the general fund $15.3 million, most of which probably would come out of law and justice. But what will that mean to citizens? The county roads fund would take a $10.3 million hit — twice that with the loss of federal and state matching funds. What will that mean for road improvements and maintenance?
That’s the kind of information voters need in order to make a reasoned choice about whether to sign the initiative in the coming months. It’s up to public officials and the news media to report it. And it’s the responsibility of voters to study the initiative before deciding whether to sign it.
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