State Sen. Karen Keiser (D-Des Moines) will enter a bill to remove the emergency clause which allows the Port of Seattle to collect property taxes without a vote of the people. This is based upon the damning performance audit prepared by the State Auditor.
Tim Eyman has indicated to the papers that he is interested in preparing a similar initiative to do the same thing. Democrats will outflank the Republicans on reducing taxes if the Legislature passes this bill. No public programs will be hurt!
The audit covered three years. The tip of a 20-year iceberg. The audit demonstrated that $97 million of the $179 million property tax dollars taken in during that period had been squandered.
The new CEO does not appear to understand the significance. The Port is clearly a rogue.
I suggested to the Port Commission on Tuesday and to the Legislature's I-900 Subcommittee on Wednesday that state law governing the Port be revised to include these changes:
1. During WWII as an emergency measure the Seattle Port Commission was authorized to collect property taxes without a vote of the people. I request that measure be deleted.
2. Commissioners should be partisan positions and Commissioner Districts must be required to provide a uniform level of county wide accountability.
3. Container taxes and air and marine passenger facility charges are appropriate to pay off the huge taxpayer debt generated by foreign flag corporate welfare ($5.3 billion including $2.1 billion interest expense).
4. The Port is inefficient when compared to competition. Drastic belt tightening is required to return public earnings to the taxpayers. The Port has a large number of wasted high-paid redundant positions which appear to have been created to justify higher pay for upper level positions.
The new CEO earns three quarters of a million. The Marina at Des Moines returns more earnings than the Port of Seattle.
5. The Commissioners should be adequately reimbursed and have their own staff. Semi-volunteer Commissioners are working up to 50 hours a week hanging onto the tails of too many tigers.
6. These costly performance audits are paying for themselves and should be continued until this rogue Port is brought under control.
Dan Caldwell
Des Moines
