The Seattle City Council’s budget committee unanimously approved the 2026 budget Thursday, marking what officials characterize as a historic investment in affordable housing, public safety, homelessness services, and programmes designed to improve affordability for working families across the city.
The budget authorises $8.9 billion in overall appropriations, of which $2.0 billion comes from the General Fund that supports core city services including police, fire, parks, libraries, and transportation maintenance.
Councilmember Dan Strauss, chair of the Select Budget Committee, emphasised the budget’s focus on making Seattle safer and more affordable for residents. “From the start, I have said this budget needs to be about making Seattle safer and more affordable for working families,” Strauss stated. “I’m proud that today, the Council passed a budget that does just that.”
The approved budget includes several major spending priorities and new programmes designed to address challenges city leaders have identified as most urgent for Seattle residents.
Housing investments represent a centrepiece of the 2026 budget, with $349.5 million allocated for affordable housing development and preservation, an amount officials note is more than five times the $65 million invested in 2019. This dramatic increase reflects both increased revenue from sources including the JumpStart payroll tax and political consensus around prioritising housing affordability as a solution to multiple interconnected challenges including homelessness, displacement of long-time residents, and workforce retention.
The housing allocation is supplemented by $65 million from voter-approved Proposition 1A specifically designated for social housing, the public development model that creates mixed-income housing serving residents across the economic spectrum rather than exclusively serving low-income households. Additionally, $10 million is earmarked for rental assistance programmes that help households maintain housing during temporary financial crises, and $2.5 million is designated for tenant assistance organisations that provide legal representation and advocacy for renters facing eviction or housing discrimination.
Addressing homelessness remains a stated priority in the 2026 budget, with $11.8 million allocated for new shelter and emergency housing capacity, $2 million to assist people living in vehicles through programmes providing sanitation services and connections to housing resources, and $1.4 million for programmes supporting runaway and homeless youth who face distinct challenges accessing services designed primarily for adults.
The budget also establishes a $9 million reserve fund specifically designated to counter potential federal funding cuts to homeless shelter operations, a contingency reflecting concerns that the Trump administration may reduce or eliminate federal grants that currently support significant portions of Seattle’s homelessness response system.
In response to the federal government allowing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme benefits to lapse for certain categories of recipients, the Council allocated an additional $4 million to address the resulting food insecurity emergency affecting thousands of Seattle households. This funding includes $375,000 for food banks experiencing increased demand, $250,000 for hot meal programmes serving seniors, and $200,000 to support farmers’ markets in food deserts where residents have limited access to affordable fresh produce.
Public safety investments in the 2026 budget include $1.25 million to expand mobile teams providing treatment for opioid use disorder, bringing medication-assisted treatment and recovery services directly to individuals on the streets rather than requiring them to navigate intake processes at clinical facilities. An additional $150,000 will support low-income individuals transitioning out of inpatient treatment programmes, providing bridge funding for housing, transportation, and other stability needs during the vulnerable early recovery period.
The Seattle Fire Department will receive funding for an additional 20-person recruit class to address staffing shortages that have sometimes forced temporary closure of fire stations or slower emergency response times in certain neighbourhoods. The department will also receive funding for an additional aid car to improve emergency medical response capacity.
The Seattle Police Department’s hiring plan receives full funding in the approved budget, with resources allocated to hire more than 170 new officers over the course of 2026 as the department continues efforts to rebuild staffing levels that declined significantly following the 2020 protests and subsequent resignations and retirements. The budget also funds additional mental health professionals to be deployed to each precinct, expanding the co-responder model where clinicians accompany officers on calls involving mental health crises.
The final budget preserves funding included in Mayor Bruce Harrell’s proposal to double the Community Crisis Responder Teams operated by the Crisis Assistance Response and Engagement programme, and to hire additional 911 call takers to reduce hold times for emergency calls.
Community safety programmes will receive a $2 million increase, including $500,000 for the King County Sexual Assault Resource Centre that provides crisis intervention and advocacy for survivors, and $500,000 for organisations serving survivors of gender-based violence. The budget also allocates $3 million for neighbourhood safety plans specifically targeting Little Saigon and Lake City, two areas that have experienced increased property crime and public safety concerns according to community feedback.
To maintain fiscal responsibility amidst economic uncertainty, the Council increased the city’s emergency reserve fund, commonly called the “Rainy Day” Fund, by $4.7 million, bringing the total to a level that provides several months of operating expenses if revenue declines sharply during a recession. The budget also allocates $14 million specifically to shield Seattle from potential federal funding cuts that could affect multiple city programmes currently supported partly by federal grants.
The Council has requested a report creating a roadmap for the city’s long-term fiscal sustainability, acknowledging concerns that some revenue sources funding expanded programmes may not grow sufficiently to support ongoing operations without eventual tax increases or service reductions.
The budget now advances to a final vote at a special Seattle City Council meeting scheduled for 1 p.m. Friday. If approved as expected, it will be transmitted to Mayor Bruce Harrell for his signature, which would make the budget effective for the 2026 fiscal year beginning 1 January.
