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Judge strikes Seattle charter amendment on homelessness from November ballot
Seattle Times A judge has ruled that Charter Amendment 29, known as “Compassion Seattle,” won’t go before Seattle voters in November. The measure could have changed the way the city addresses homelessness if it had passed, although how much isn’t clear.
King County Superior Court Judge Catherin Schaffer said that she actually liked the ballot initiative and would have voted for it if it was on a ballot — but her ruling was about whether it goes beyond the power given to cities by state law.
“But my view is kind of irrelevant to what’s before me,” Shaffer said during a hearing Friday. If passed, Charter Amendment 29 “would be local folks seeking to overturn the will of the state population as expressed through our state representatives in legislation. And that’s not how it works.”
The measure would have temporarily amended the city’s charter, its founding document, to demand that the city set up 2,000 shelter or housing units in a year, rewrite its budget so more money goes to social services, and “develop policies and procedures to address those individuals who remain in public spaces,” which the next mayor — who will be chosen in November — could have interpreted a number of ways.
King County Superior Court Judge Catherin Schaffer said that she actually liked the ballot initiative and would have voted for it if it was on a ballot — but her ruling was about whether it goes beyond the power given to cities by state law.
“But my view is kind of irrelevant to what’s before me,” Shaffer said during a hearing Friday. If passed, Charter Amendment 29 “would be local folks seeking to overturn the will of the state population as expressed through our state representatives in legislation. And that’s not how it works.”
The measure would have temporarily amended the city’s charter, its founding document, to demand that the city set up 2,000 shelter or housing units in a year, rewrite its budget so more money goes to social services, and “develop policies and procedures to address those individuals who remain in public spaces,” which the next mayor — who will be chosen in November — could have interpreted a number of ways.