It’s easy to feel powerless when our own federal government takes actions that keep our communities from getting the food, housing, and medical care they need to survive. But this fall, Seattle voters have two chances to do something meaningful about it – something that will have a direct impact on the lives of our neighbors.
On the November 4 ballot, Seattle voters are being asked to restructure the city’s Business and Occupancy Tax and double the Families, Education, Preschool, and Promise (FEPP) Levy in order to raise millions of dollars to ease a growing budget deficit, invest in our children, and protect critical programs from federal funding restrictions. The B&O tax restructuring, known as the Seattle Shield Initiative, would raise about $80 million per year to fund critical programs, while the FEPP Levy would collect an estimated $1.3 billion over the next six years to invest in the future of Seattle’s children.
Solid Ground urges Seattle residents to vote YES on Propositions 1 and 2. Make sure you return your ballot by 8pm on Tuesday, November 4, 2025.
Precarious times
This fall’s off-year election comes at a particularly precarious time for our city and nation. For years, the City of Seattle has been grappling with a structural budget deficit expected to reach $150 million by 2026. Without additional revenue, the city would need to drastically cut spending on programs that help people get the food, housing, and transportation options they need – likely including those operated by Solid Ground.
Meanwhile, Seattle is looking to mitigate the harm of looming federal cuts to Medicaid and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, as well as potential reductions to homelessness funding like the Continuum of Care and housing vouchers. An estimated 15,000 people in Washington state are expected to lose SNAP benefits under House Resolution 1 (HR1) – the so-called Big Beautiful Bill – while at least 250,000 residents will lose Medicaid coverage and more still will be priced out of our state’s health care exchange. (For more about the impacts of HR1, check out Statewide Poverty Action Network’s report on Impacts of Federal Actions).
Mayor Bruce Harrell’s proposed budget for next year was built on the assumption that both Propositions 1 and 2 would be approved by the voters, because it’s the only way to avoid drastic cuts to housing and human services. If these initiatives fail, our neighbors would be faced with the doubled harm of losing both federal support and critical city-funded services.
Propositions 1 and 2 will not eliminate the city’s budget deficit or fully mitigate the harm of impending federal cuts. But together, they’re a critical first step in assuring that Seattle safeguards the well-being of its people at a time when we can no longer rely on our federal government to do so. What Seattle voters do this fall will determine what impact those cuts have on our neighbors.
How they work
The Seattle Shield Initiative, which appears as Proposition 2 on your ballot, would raise an estimated $81 million per year while reducing B&O taxes paid by the vast majority of businesses in the city. It accomplishes this by increasing an exemption in the tax to $2 million of taxable gross income per year, meaning only companies that make more than $2 million would pay anything at all. As a result, 90% of Seattle-based businesses would pay less in B&O tax, while the city’s wealthiest businesses would pay more.
Most of the money raised would be used to pay for human services, housing and homelessness, food security, gender-based violence programs, public health, arts and culture, and transportation – though it falls far short of closing the $150 million deficit expected in 2026. The Seattle Shield Initiative would also allocate up to $30 million to mitigate the impact of federal funding cuts to housing stability, affordable housing, emergency shelters, and food insecurity.
The FEPP Levy, appearing as Proposition 1 on your ballot, is a renewal and doubling of a property tax levy that’s been supporting the success of children and young adults in Seattle since 1990. Approved by voters six times already, the levy helps families afford childcare, preschool, two-year college programs, job training, and more. It also funds school-based health centers, violence prevention, and school safety.
Programs funded by the levy are critical for the success of many families Solid Ground serves, including residents of Sand Point Housing and Broadview Shelter & Transitional Housing. Without it, many families would be left without accessible, affordable education and childcare opportunities.
More than just taxes
Together, these two propositions represent a critical opportunity to invest in our Seattle communities’ health and fight back against the harm threatened by our federal government. In times like this, these kinds of measures aren’t just acts of civic investment – they’re acts of resistance and hope.
Now is the time to join together to make meaningful, systemic changes! Check out our Advocacy Actions to join our work locally and follow our friends at the Statewide Poverty Action Network for ways to make a difference across Washington state!
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