Seattle Transit Measure renewal heads toward Council amendments—July 6 step

Seattle City Council’s Select Committee on the Seattle Transportation Benefit District discussed CB 121226 on July 6, moving the proposed 2026 Seattle Transit Measure renewal into the amendment and public-input phase. The measure would ask Seattle voters to approve a sales and use tax on the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot—intended to replace the expiring 2020 Seattle Transit Measure.

For riders and taxpayers, the key point right now isn’t a final decision by Council. It’s that committee review can change the final ballot language—especially around (1) how transit “accessibility and safety” capital work is defined and funded, and (2) how much the tax would rise under competing amendment ideas.

What CB 121226 would put before voters (as written now)

In its current ordinance text, CB 121226 would submit a proposition to authorize up to a 0.3% sales and use tax. If voters approve, the tax would be effective no earlier than April 1, 2027, and would run for up to a ten-year term ending March 31, 2037. The measure is designed to replace the 0.15% sales and use tax authorized by Seattle voters in 2020, which expires March 31, 2027.

The ordinance directs that the collected revenue would be used solely for transit and transportation purposes described in the bill, plus associated administrative costs—starting with election and required administrative costs for the state Department of Revenue.

It also spells out major spending categories for the revenue:

• Service hours for King County Metro-operated services with more than 65% of stops within Seattle, including associated administration, maintenance, and asset management.
• RapidRide service hours on current and future RapidRide lines serving Seattle.
• Service hours on routes serving Seattle’s highest equity priority areas, using ridership and census data.
• Transit access programs for qualifying seniors, Seattle Housing Authority and other low-income housing residents, youth and young adults (including Seattle Promise students), and low-income families. This category is capped at up to $12 million in annual appropriations.
• Infrastructure maintenance and capital improvements to improve transit operations’ efficiency, safety, accessibility, and availability. This category is capped at up to $5 million in annual appropriations (excluding capital carryforward allowed under state law).
• City staffing to facilitate planning, engineering, permitting, and project delivery for Sound Transit 3 projects approved by regional voters (including West Seattle Link Extension, Ballard Link Extension, and Graham St infill station). This category is capped at up to $8 million in annual appropriations (excluding carryforward allowed under state law).

CB 121226 also includes a service-focused guardrail: annual appropriations for the service-related categories (2.A, 2.B, and 2.C in the ordinance) must total at least 60% of annual proposition revenues, intended to increase frequency and reliability.

Why the July 6 committee step matters (and what comes next)

On July 6, the Select Committee held a meeting where CB 121226 was one of the items discussed, as part of the Council’s ongoing deliberations on the 2026 Seattle Transit Measure package. Councilmember Juarez’s July 6 blog post describes the committee being briefed on amendments to the proposed measure package.

The public hearing is scheduled next. Councilmember Juarez’s update says the Select Committee will hold a public hearing on July 13 with two dedicated comment sessions:

• Remote public comment starting at 9:30 a.m.
• In-person public comment starting at 5 p.m.

After that hearing, the Select Committee is expected to vote on the proposed amendments and the final STM package on July 16, with a goal of sending the measure to Seattle voters for the November ballot.

Two amendment themes are emerging under Council review

1) Accessibility and safety capital work (Councilmember Juarez’s Amendment 20)

Councilmember Debora Juarez’s amendment (Amendment 20) is aimed at expanding definitions for “infrastructure maintenance and capital improvements.” In her July 6 update, Juarez says the amendment is based on feedback from the Seattle Disability Commission and the Seattle Pedestrian Advisory Board and would allow dedicated funding to support specific accessibility and safety project types—such as ADA upgrades, accessible transit stops, safety enhancements, pedestrian connections, and wayfinding improvements.

Juarez’s post also frames the proposal as shifting emphasis within the larger STM package, describing the current proposal as allocating less than 4% to transit infrastructure specifically serving people with disabilities, older adults, and the vision-impaired community—then proposing to expand that definition.

2) Affordability and service flexibility (Councilmember Kettle’s alternative)

Councilmember Bob Kettle’s alternative proposal focuses on tax levels and flexibility. In his July 2 update, Kettle says the mayor’s version would increase the sales tax from 0.15% to 0.3%, while Kettle’s approach would limit the sales tax increase to just 0.2%, and reserve 0.1% for potential emergent transportation investments approved by City Council.

Kettle’s post also lays out how his alternative would preserve the Transit Accessibility Program (including 22,000 free ORCA passes) and describes reducing duplicate funding for certain capital spending that voters approved through the 2024 Transportation Levy.

Separately, Kettle’s “Next steps” section says the City Council is expected to discuss amendments to the current transit measure on July 6, with a public hearing set for July 13. It adds that the Council must approve a proposed package to send to voters by August 4 so the measure can be considered in the November general election.

What residents should watch before testimony and the vote

With the July 13 hearing coming up, riders, commuters, renters, and homeowners may want to focus questions in testimony around:

• Tax rate language: whether the final package keeps the current proposal or adopts an alternative tax increase.
• Service-hours commitments: how Council frames the ordinance’s service-hour buckets and the “at least 60%” requirement.
• Accessibility and safety capital definitions: what kinds of projects are explicitly included under the infrastructure category.
• Tradeoffs: how any shift in accessibility/safety or affordability choices affects the balance between service expansion and capital investments.
• Process and deadlines: the July 13 hearing, the expected July 16 committee vote, and the August 4 step to get to voters for November.

Sources

• Legistar (Seattle City Council) — CB 121226 full ordinance text
• Seattle.gov (SDOT) — Seattle Transit Measure Renewal overview
• Seattle City Council Blog — Councilmember Juarez: safety & accessibility amendment (Amendment 20)

Related News

• Newark’s July 15 budget hearing: what council will take up
• PennDOT to Close I-376 (Parkway East) July 10–Aug. 3 for Bridge Slide
• New Orleans council presses Entergy, SWBNO after Arthur outage
• Monterey hotel-tax increase heads to November vote; $75k outreach planned