Vote “No” on the Tacoma Housing Provider Fee and Enforcement Initiative
“Safe Homes for All” Would Cost Taxpayers Up to $10 Million Per Year
Tacoma voters will consider a sweeping new rental regulation measure in this November’s general election that the City Manager estimates could cost taxpayers and businesses $8 million to $10 million per year, on top of a projected $40 million General Fund budget shortfall for 2027–28.
The Tacoma Housing Provider Fee and Enforcement Initiative, officially known as Safe Homes for All Initiative Measure No. 1, would add a costly new licensing and enforcement structure on top of Tacoma’s existing rental housing regulations. With the City’s budget already stretched, those new costs would compete with the General Fund dollars that pay for police, fire, and other core city services.
Supporters describe the initiative as a way to keep rental homes safe, but Tacoma already has rental housing regulations and tenant protections on the books. What this measure adds is a new layer of City bureaucracy: rental licenses and per-unit fees, a new City complaint and enforcement process, a searchable public database of housing providers, and tenant-union bargaining requirements for many housing providers. Each of those pieces carries a cost, and those costs get passed along to the people who rent.
Bad for Renters
Higher costs to provide housing will mean higher rents, less investment, and a reduced housing supply. Tacoma renters cannot afford to pay more or have fewer choices, and they already have existing legal remedies when housing providers violate the law.
Bad for Low-Income Families
The initiative would expose housing providers to new compliance requirements and penalties as high as five times the monthly rent, including for violations of new tenant-organizing, notice, and bargaining rules. Faced with those added costs and risks, some smaller, local housing providers will raise rents, stop renting altogether, or sell. Every home that comes off the rental market means fewer options for the people who can least afford it: low-income families, seniors, and residents living on fixed incomes.
More cost. More risk. More bureaucracy. Reduced housing supply in Tacoma = “No” Vote in November
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Future 42 Pierce County is a local 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization working to keep citizens informed and engaged on decisions affecting our communities, businesses, and future. Building on Future 42’s work in Snohomish, Whatcom, and Clark counties, we advocate for public safety, housing affordability, government accountability, and tax relief.