An open letter to our elected officials and our community …

A Business Case for 1590

As a chamber of commerce, we are not usually the first organization to support a tax, especially a new tax and one that could be a burden to businesses (as a collector in this scenario). In fact, I could say that we are not endorsing this tax – but we certainly are not opposing it.

Why? Simply our community is out of options that can affect real change in the short term. The implementation of this 1590 could certainly do just that. We need a tool, or at least a new tool in our toolbox.

But before we press go, we need you as our elected leaders to develop a strategy and a plan for the following:

Regionalism: We need our municipalities and local governments to partner better than ever before. No more passing the proverbial buck back and forth between the City of Bellingham and Whatcom County, or between Ferndale and Lynden, or even between Downtown and Fairhaven – we are all in this together. Which is why, if we impose this funding mechanism, then it should be county wide. And the funding of solutions needs to be throughout the county, our region, our home.

Housing: If you continue to not address housing in our urban centers, in our neighborhoods, in our UGAs, and even in our unincorporated areas, we are simply wasting our breath, time, and dollars. For the better part of ten years, the City of Bellingham community survey has found that (1) housing, (2) homelessness, and (3) jobs are the three biggest topics and pain points facing our community. Our inconvenient truth is that homelessness and jobs cannot be addressed without addressing housing as a priority and an emergency.

In fact, I would say it is irresponsible to consider this tax without addressing that elephant in the room. The pandemic has made a bad problem even worse. Currently we have less housing availability than ever before. If we are choosing to fund tools to bring people out of homelessness but not have any intention of helping them through the full housing continuum (and possible employment), we will have failed.

We must implement strategies now to address the many reasons some have purposely stifled growth in our community. We have seven million neighbors within an hour and a half of Bellingham – and we are the cheapest place to live. If we are not willing to accept additional population growth across the housing continuum, then we are again wasting our time. Where is your emergency actions for housing for all.

In recent memory, the CHAT recommendations of a decade or so ago were some solid solutions. Sustainable Connection’s Whatcom Housing Alliance has supplied some good dialogue. Most recently the Whatcom County Council’s own Business & Commerce Committee list of recommendations – and these was functionally ignored.

Impacts to Business: For years, our business community has felt the impact of our unhoused community, including unwanted (and sometimes illegal) activities generally associated with homelessness. This same business community has continued to be the front lines engaging with these neighbors, funding and donating to numerous nonprofit organizations working tirelessly to positively impact lives, and pay taxes that should be used at least in part of solve this societal dilemma in our community. Now again you want the business community to bear part of the burden as a collector of this funding.

A Finish Line: This tax needs a sunset. For no other reason than if we fail any of the first three items. If we choose not to achieve regional solutions and partnerships, if we cannot facilitate an immediate increase of housing options across the entire spectrum through both strategic and emergency rulemaking, and if will not limit our businesses exposure to unwanted activities, then again you are wasting not only your time but our financial resources.

Regressive tax: Many have argued this is a regressive tax. I suppose by definition it is. It is probably more important to measure its impact to determine how regressive it will be. Also, as many have pointed out, it is merely a $1.00 tax for every $1,000.00 spent. I prefer the ratio of $500 for every $500,000 home that is sold, but that may be me trying too hard to make a point.

One aspect that I have not heard much is our identity as a regional shopping destination. Our communities often see outside dollars coming up from Seattle weekend getaways, tri-county shopping trips, and of course the 4+ million people just north of the border who will return to shop in the near future. These are dollars that will be collected by Bellingham, and our border communities of Blaine and Sumas, which will translate into so much more than we would spend on our own. Therefore, the amount of dollars that we can leverage are not as “regressive” as we think.

What is our community vision?
So much of this dilemma is a lack of vision and perhaps this situation ties into my first point about regionalism. It feels like we do not have a shared identity and vision, or perhaps we have simply lost our bearings. We need to be a community that supports our most vulnerable specifically our youth, we need to have a commitment that no one should go without shelter and certainly no one should die in the streets or in the woods. Likewise, we should be a community that celebrates diversity across all metrics, which means we build a community that is accessible to all. We should all hold each other accountable and certain activities should not be tolerated.

Many organizations are making great strides to provide an equitable future for our community, especially with regards to youth and families, racial justice, and mental health response. These funds should continue to move the needle on this work. The other points above would also assist these equity work opportunities.

As both our Bellingham City Council and Whatcom County Council take this topic up for discussion and a vote, it is my hope that each of you as our elected leaders choose to see this as the robust, nuanced, “sticky wicket” of a problem it has become. If you choose this path utilizing 1590, it is my hope you choose to solve each of the associated needs as well.

We can do this, because simply we do not have another alternative.

Thank you for your time.