Big businesses want lower taxes. Cities—and many of the people who live in them—want lower rates of homelessness. Lately, the compatibility of these two desires is being tested, as local governments across the U.S. float a new strategy to help the growing number of unsheltered people on their streets: Asking businesses to pay a greater share in funding aid.
Last week, a coalition of homelessness advocates, non-profits, and tenant groups in San Francisco secured an initiative for November’s ballot that, if passed, would almost double the city’s spending on homeless shelters using an increased gross receipts tax. “There’s so much wealth in San Francisco that we can [use to] address a longstanding issue,” said Mary Howe, the executive director of San Francisco’s Homeless Youth Alliance.
“This is an opportunity for all of us to come together: We all benefit from seeing people move beyond poverty and homelessness.” This news comes just weeks after Seattle—home to companies like Amazon and Starbucks, along with the third-largest homeless population in the country—capitulated on a similar plan. After weeks of debate, the city’s council had passed a per-employee tax on Seattle’s largest corporations that would have raised $47 million for affordable housing and homeless initiatives.
Though the charge had already been negotiated down to almost half its original size after an ultimatum from Amazon, a broader anti-tax coalition formed swiftly: The e-commerce giant, along with Starbucks, Vulcan, and other city-based outfits, campaigned hard to put a referendum on the November ballot. And, mere days before their repeal was slated for approval, Seattle’s city council voted to overturn the measure themselves.
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