Spokane resident urges county to adopt 0.1% sales tax for affordable housing

Becky Dickerhoof, a Spokane resident, told the Spokane County Board of County Commissioners on July 8 that the board should enact what she called a “15 90 tax,” invoking RCW 82.14.530 to permit a county sales-and-use tax not to exceed one‑tenth of 1 percent to fund housing for people who are unsheltered.

Dickerhoof said the ordinance she described would require at least 60% of revenue to be used for construction of housing and related services, with the remainder for operations and delivery of services. “This will allow the county to create more homes for the unsheltered,” she said.

The comment came during the meeting’s open public forum and was not tied to any board motion or formal agenda item during the public comment period. Dickerhoof cited national advocates and data to frame the need: she referenced the Opportunity Starts at Home campaign and the National Alliance to End Homelessness, a screening of the documentary No Place to Grow Old, and a 2024 HUD point‑in‑time count to describe trends among older adults entering homelessness.

Dickerhoof presented several figures: she said older adults (age 55 and older) are among the fastest‑growing group entering homelessness and noted national counts of renter households and those with extremely low incomes. She also told commissioners that alternatives such as shelter and jail are more expensive locally, saying, “In Spokane, we know the track shelter and jail are examples of costly alternatives.”

The board took no action on the request during the meeting. No commissioner motion to place a tax measure on a future ballot or to direct staff to draft implementing ordinances was recorded during the public comment period.