Kent Mayor Dana Ralph announced Monday, Aug. 17, she will not send Proposition A to the Kent City Council to possibly refer to the voters on the Nov. 3 General Election ballot.
If approved, Proposition A would have added 30 police officers and support staff to the Kent Police Department. The King County Elections deadline for submitting ballot measures was Aug. 4.
“Despite polling indicating voter support for the levy, I can’t in good faith ask Kent residents to raise their taxes during this challenging time,” Ralph said. “Families are struggling with basic things like utility bills – asking them to pay more during a global health pandemic isn’t what is best for our most vulnerable.
“Instead, I will continue to work with the community to find ways to improve our public safety, sense of community and fulfill the city’s responsibilities within the budget we already have.”
In July 2019, Ralph and then Council President Bill Boyce canceled a potential November 2019 measure at the last moment because the mayor said the timing wasn’t right. Ralph wanted the council to consider a property tax levy lid lift. A levy lid lift requires voter approval and allows a taxing district (in this case the city) to exceed the 1 percent limit on annual property tax collections for a period of up to six years.
Police Chief Rafael Padilla told a Kent Chamber of Commerce crowd in October that voters could expect to see a ballot measure in 2020 to hire more officers. Ralph still had indicated support for such a measure that would increase the number of officers to about 195 from the current 165.
Voters rejected in April 2018 by 57 to 43 percent a hike in utility taxes to 8 percent from 6 percent to pay for more officers. That would have brought in about $4.5 million a year to hire 23 more officers. The city levies a fee on electric, natural gas, cable and phone bills.
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