Cities should tax the rich and fund housing
Seattle's new law will send $53 million a year toward affordable housing.

Dear readers,

The cost of housing should be a scandal. This crisis gets worse every day -- with no relief on the horizon from the Trump administration or Congress.

But we don't have to wait for Washington to act. Cities can start fixing inequality and building affordable housing now.

We need more cities to follow the example set by Seattle voters, who passed a new law to tax the richest and send millions toward affordable housing.

Add your name to the Inequality.org petition: tell city leaders nationwide to follow Seattle’s example.

While the federal government ignores important cost-of-living issues and blocks progress, we can and should demand that our largest cities address inequality and the housing crisis.

Here's how Seattle's tax works: Anyone earning more than $1 million a year will be subject to a 5% tax on the income above that amount, paid by their employer.

This new tax was passed last month by Seattle voters, as Proposition 1A. And it wasn't even close -- it won by a 26-point margin. It is expected to raise at least $53 million a year, dedicated to fund publicly-owned, permanently affordable housing.

They call it social housing: publicly-owned housing for residents who earn up to 120 percent of the area median income, currently $145,000. Renters with higher incomes will cross-subsidize the lower-income renters, and rent is capped at 30 percent of household income.

Add your name: mayors and city councils nationwide should follow Seattle’s example. Tax the rich and fund affordable housing.

It's an example of what we can do when we focus on local solutions -- and there's nothing the Trump Administration can do to stop it.