King County executive says he stands with Seattle mayor despite originally opposing head tax



SEATTLE -- King County Executive Dow Constantine says despite his opposition to the Seattle head tax, he and the mayor are still on the same page when it comes to combating the homeless crisis.

On May 3, Constantine and Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan announced the two governments would work together to help with the homeless issues in the area.

Less than two weeks later, on May 11, Constantine said he opposed Seattle’s plan for a massive head tax on business, a tax focused on helping the homeless.

The Seattle Times interviewed Constantine about his concerns. At the time, the county executive said the possible loss of jobs due to the head tax worried him.

He also said instead of passing the head tax, the city and the county should get back to working together.

Three days later, on May 14, Seattle City Council unanimously approved the head tax.

Q13 News asked Constantine how the community can have faith in the city and county plan to work together, when they seemingly can’t agree on one of the largest homeless efforts in Seattle this year.

Q13 News: “Do you feel unified with this city?”

Constantine: “I think Mayor Durkan did a good job bringing her council to a compromise.”

Constantine says he originally called for both governments to get back to their unified effort.

But he says he and Durkan are on the same page.

“Now that things have calmed down at City Hall, we can get back to ‘One Table’, and get back to work on that regional solution,” said Constantine.

Q13 News reached out to Durkan's office for about a week for comment. City officials said she was not available but, in a statement, said, in part, “There are no changes to either the city or county commitment to finding the best ways forward on a regional basis.”