JOHN CURLEY AND SHARI ELLIKER

King County taxpayers exported $2.95 billion to other counties in 2016

Nov 21, 2019, 3:43 PM

Funding arguments between King County and the rest of the state often sound like siblings complaining about each other’s Christmas presents, except in this case it’s infrastructure projects.

Those in the rest of the state are often resentful about funding Seattle area projects and those in the Emerald City area have similar feelings. A new report from the Office of Financial Management (OFM) seems to complicate the manner. It examines how revenue is shared among Washington’s 39 counties, and found that taxpayers in King County exported $2.95 billion to the other counties in 2016, meaning that “37 cents of every dollar of state taxes paid by King County taxpayers was spent elsewhere,” reports The Seattle Times.

“King County is sort of like the football program at the University of Washington; it’s funding the other counties in the state,” joked KIRO Radio’s Tom Tangney. “And the biggest recipient of that is Pierce County, they’re getting 508 million more than they gave in state taxes.”

We’re the worst: Washington has the worst local taxes in the US

Yakima County came in second with a net gain of $395 million, followed by Clark County at plus $375 million. So the Times found that King County gives 97 percent of the money to 33 other counties that pay less than what they provide.

“But Danny (Westneat) is in no way saying that that’s a problem, because this is the progressive system. The top one percent of all wage earners — that’s anybody making $550,000 a year — pay pay 40 percent of all taxes collected,” said co-host John Curley. “So it’s the top one percent pay 40, the top 10 percent pay 70, and about half of them get a complete and absolute free ride.”

Shortage of Seattle public bathrooms creating wave of waste

“It’s just that the irony is that the people who are getting the free ride are the ones complaining, ‘Hey, we’re giving you too much money,’ and it’s just the opposite,” Tom added. “He’s just sort of saying that when you go ahead and criticize Seattle, you really ought to check your P’s and Q’s.”

Listen to the Tom and Curley Show weekday mornings from 9 a.m. to noon on KIRO Radio, 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.

John Curley and Shari Elliker on KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM
  • listen to tom and curleyTune in to KIRO Newsradio weekdays at 3pm for John Curley and Shari Elliker.

John Curley and Shari Elliker

John Curley and Shari Elliker

Photo: Scott Fitzsimmons' "I-1THIS" license plate....

KIRO Newsradio staff

‘I didn’t even feel it’: John Curley shares astonishing story of local winner

The "I-1THIS" license plate is more than creative, it comes with a story of triumph. John Curley told the story who won the winning plate.

13 days ago

seattle nightmare tenant...

Frank Sumrall

Seattle homeowner’s ‘nightmare tenant’ situation resolved one year later

A Seattle homeowner's "nightmare tenant" situation, causing him to live in a van instead of his home for a stretch of time, has finally been resolved one year later.

14 days ago

curley dancing naked...

John Curley

John Curley’s life advice: Start your day by dancing naked to Andrea Bocelli

This has been a part of my regular morning routine for some time now: getting up in the morning and dancing naked every day.

15 days ago

...

MyNorthwest Video

Video: Let’s Talk About Eagles

John and Shari discuss the hatch watch for a bald Eagle named Jackie as she sits on her eggs. Then, the conversation goes in a different direction about snakes eating eggs and eagles eating cats. You want to listen to this one! Listen to the John Curley and Shari Elliker Show every weekday at 3pm […]

20 days ago

...

MyNorthwest Video

Video: Bradley Cooper Walks Around His House Naked

Apparently, Bradley Cooper walks around his house naked a lot. The John and Shari Show talks about their experiences growing up with their parents. Listen to the John Curley and Shari Elliker Show every weekday at 3pm on KIRO Newsraio 97.3 FM Listen to KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM or go to MyNorthwest.com to learn more! […]

27 days ago

...

MyNorthwest Video

Video: The Naked Man Festival Is No More

If you had travelling to Japan for the annual Naked Men Festival on your bucket list… we have some bad news. After more than 1000 years, the festival has been permanently canceled. Listen to the John Curley and Shari Elliker Show every weekday at 3pm on KIRO Newsraio 97.3 FM Listen to KIRO Newsradio 97.3 […]

1 month ago

King County taxpayers exported $2.95 billion to other counties in 2016