(DCNF)—A deep-blue Washington county raised taxes on the same day it appointed an inspector general to root out the widely reported fraud from within its’ government spending programs.
King County Council approved a new ordinance on Oct. 6, adding a penny to every $100 in taxable purchases, Seattle Red reported. The new sales tax sends revenue into a program managed by the Department of Community and Human Services (DCHS) — the same department that’s been under fire for reported fraud and funding mismanagement over the past year, requiring a new Inspector General Division.
The county was allowed to pass this ordinance because of Washington state’s Engrossed Substitute House Bill 2442. Democratic lawmakers passed the bill in February in a party-line vote, allowing counties to impose the 0.01 percent tax by ordinance.
“The bill is the result of an unfortunate situation that many county governments find themselves in from large budgetary restraints on funds from the state and federal level,” Democratic Washington state Rep. Shaun Scott, an avowed socialist and one of the legislation’s sponsors, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Our primary focus is not on what funds are spent towards. It’s on giving communities authority to provide basic services.”
However, Republicans who opposed the legislation that greenlighted King County’s tax increase disagree. Republican Washington state Rep. Chris Corry suggested to the DCNF that the Democratic-backed bill removed taxpayer protections.
“Washington state has had a long history of having vote requirements to be able to raise taxes,” Corry told the DCNF. “It’s a protection measure and an accountability measure for those elected.”
The DCHS did not respond to the DCNF’s request for comment. The King Council did not provide a comment on the record by time of publication.
Corry added that the legislation increases the size and scope of government without accountability or restrictions and puts the burden on local government.
“It’s not fair to our city councils or counties to have to pay those taxes and is a poor way to govern,” he said. “It’s making it less transparent for raising taxes and covering up the negative impacts the state is putting on city and local governments by just telling them to go tax.”
Meanwhile, Scott, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), said that fraud is something the state of Washington takes seriously, but is not something he and other legislators explicitly outlined to prevent in the act.
“There’s no need for additional oversight given that audits are conducted independently at the local and state level,” Scott told the DCNF.
The King County Auditor’s Office conducted one such audit in August 2025 putting the County’s DCHS at the center of an ongoing fraud review.
“Amid rapid growth in grant funding, DCHS did not consistently apply internal controls, resulting in improper payments, including potential fraud, across multiple programs and contracts,” the audit said. “We found that the department has not done enough to manage its financial risk.”
The audit found that DCHS, which handles nearly 90 percent of county grants, failed to conduct basic, routine financial and contract monitoring of grantees as its awards climbed from a combined $922 million in 2019 and 2020 to $1.87 billion in 2023 and 2024.
The reviewed programs included three juvenile diversion programs and an education and community empowerment program for youth and families, the audit listed.
An annual risk-assessment from 2024 reviewed nearly half of the Departments 359 taxpayer funded grants as high risk, the audit stated.
“DCHS lacks documented policies and procedures, training, and checklists for validating invoices — reducing consistency and increasing opportunities for fraud, waste, and abuse,” the audit said. “In our review, we identified grantees whose spending deviated significantly from contract budgets without appropriate amendment or oversight.”
“Make no mistake, this is a damning audit,” Democratic King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci told a news outlet in 2025.
King County includes the city of Seattle and gave 74% of its vote to failed Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election. Its council consists of seven Democrats and two Republicans.
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