Proposition No. 1
Library Facilities Bonds - $196,400,000

To construct and improve 25 neighborhood libraries and a central library, including books and technology, shall Seattle: borrow up to $196.4 million, allocating $57.9 million for speicified neighborhood libraries, $6 million for other neighborhood library facilities, and $128.6 million for the central library; issue general obligation debt therefor maturing in less than 30 years; and levy annual excess property taxes to pay and retire the debt; all as provided in Ordinance 119019?

Explanatory Statement

Library Facilities Bonds - $196,400,000- Statement prepared by City Attorney's Office

1. The Proposal

Ordinance No. 119019 authorizes the City, through the Seattle Public Library Board of Trustees, to make approximately $239,500,000 in library capital improvements throughout the City. The proposal would authorize the City to sell up to $196,400,000 in general obligation bonds to pay for the library improvements, and to levy annual excess property taxes necessary to make principal and interest payments (debt service) on the bonds. Bonds must be sold within ten years of voter approval and each bond must mature within twenty years of its sale.

The bond proceeds to be devoted to library improvements are divided as follows: $57,900,000 for neighborhood library facilities (including three new libraries, replacement of six current libraries, additions to seven current libraries, interior improvements to seven current libraries, relocation of two current libraries to improved facilities, and equipping those facilities with new technology), up to $6,000,000 for additional neighborhood library facilities to be determined through an "opportunity fund" process, and $128,600,000 for a central library on the site of the current library at 1000 Fourth Avenue in downtown Seattle.

The difference between the amount of bonds authorized by Ordinance 119019, if approved by the voters, and the total costs of the library facilities improvements (the "Project") is expected to be paid from private donations and from other public sources.

2. Effect of the Measure If Approved

The Proposed Improvements:
The list of library facilities to be funded in part from bond proceeds is contained in Attachment A to Ordinance No. 119019. (The ordinance and the attached list of projects are reprinted in full in this pamphlet.) The City Council could, by ordinance passed by a two-thirds vote after a public hearing and after considering the recommendations of the Library Board, the Mayor, and the Oversight Committee, modify the list of projects or change the amount of bond proceeds to be devoted to the neighborhood libraries or the central library.

Oversight Committee:
The City would form a nine member Libraries for All Oversight Committee to monitor the use of bond proceeds and other funds on the Project, to report at least twice a year to the Mayor and City Council on Project progress, funding, budgeted vs. actual expenditures, and compliance with ordinances, and to make recommendations to the Library Board, Mayor, and City Council regarding Property Taxes.

Property taxes in the City would be levied to pay debt service on the bonds. The exact taxes required to pay that debt service would depend on the timing of the sale of the bonds, the term of the bonds, and the bond interest rate.

According to the City's current plans and estimates, the annual property tax rate that would be required to pay for the bonds would begin at approximately $0.05 per $1,000 of assessed value in 1999 and 2000, would rise to approximately $0.31 per $1,000 in 2001 through 2004, would decline steadily thereafter to $0.16 per $1,000 in 2020 as assessed value grows, and then would drop to zero in 2024. These estimates assume all the bonds are sold by 2004 and are retired by 2023.

The estimated tax impact on any property in any year can be found by multiplying that year's tax rate by the property's assessed value. For example, for a home valued by the King County Assessor at $200,000, the additional taxes in 1999 and in 2000 according to the City's current plan would be approximately ten dollars: ($200,000/1000) x $0.05 = $10. Similarly, in 2001 the estimated additional taxes on a $200,000 home would be $62: ($200,000/1000) x $0.31 = $62.