Lloyd Hara for King County Assessor

Our campaign accentuates the positive. From time to time, however, we must deal with misleading claims that find their way into the public dialog — whether by innocent error, tendentious distortion, or deliberate deception.

Here are some of the mistaken or misleading claims you may have encountered. Click on any link to set the record straight.

1. Lloyd raised taxes at the Port of Seattle. [Rosenberger update]
2. The Rosenberger campaign has raised $30,000.
3. Mayoral candidate Joe Mallahan endorses Rosenberger.
4. King County’s elected Assessors should be appraisers. [Rosenberger]
5. Lloyd dodged the bullet of indictment for massive fraud at the Port. [Stephen Lamphear]
6. Lloyd did nothing to stop the Port Police e-mail scandal. [Stephen Lamphear]
7. Rosenberger has worked as an Assessor [or Deputy].

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Claim:

“[Rosenberger] worked … as an Assessor for 24 years.”

Source:

Voiceover in Rosenberger campaign TV spot released 2009-10-18.

Facts:

Mr. Rosenberger never worked as an Assessor.  This claim plays fast and loose with the technical status of departmental employees as “deputy assessors” under Washington law.

All appraisers and other employees in the department are deputized (sworn in) by the Assessor – as a matter of law - like sheriff employees are deputized.   They have to be deputized in order to legally carry out the functions of the assessor/sheriff … Bob Rosenberger was one of many appraisers in the commercial division.  He was not in management nor was he a Senior Appraiser. He was in an Appraiser II classification.  For this appraiser to say he has been the Assessor for 24 years is a false statement – period.

– Former Chief Deputy Assessor Loran Clark

The spot misleads unwary voters into viewing Rosenberger as the incumbent. Washington election law allows a candidate to say anything about himself, true or false, with only one statutory exception — the prohibition on false claims of incumbency.

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Claim:

“Lloyd … had oversight and review of a massive fraud at the Port and did nothing to stop it [and] dodged the bullet on legal indictments for fraud”.

Source:

Stephen Lamphear, a Rosenberger supporter, contributor and frequent online campaign surrogate, in the Redmond Reporter, 2009-09-28.

Facts:

Lamphear’s “massive fraud” refers to ten instances of civil fraud committed by Port staff, as detailed in an investigative report released 2008-12-03.  His accusation turns time backwards and stands logic on its head.

From the McKay Report [p. 21 in the print edition, or p. 26 in this 1MB PDF], here’s a key excerpt regarding the key deceit in the whole web of deception:

Several individuals told us … there was pressure to rush this contract through before the Commission membership changed at the beginning of 2006 … the Commission was not specifically informed that it could object to Port staff’s intent to the award the contract on December 30, 2005 and that the “window” of opportunity for the Commission to act consisted of less than three days, during a holiday season [which] suggests a deliberate design by Port staff to push this contract through without scrutiny …

“before Commission membership changed” … “December 30, 2005″ … “beginning of 2006″ … “scrutiny”?  Whatever are they talking about?

Here’s what the investigators are talking about: Lloyd Hara was elected November 8, 2005 (on a platform calling for increased scrutiny). He would take office at the Commission’s first meeting in January, 2006. Staff concocted a deceptive Notification Memorandum in order to win approval of a questionable Third Runway contract before the Commission membership changed to include Lloyd Hara.

To make Lamphear’s accusation all the more surreal,  the McKay investigation resulted from the State Auditor’s performance audit, which proceeded from Lloyd’s 2005 Voter Pamphlet statement (“I will insist on yearly performance audits“).

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Claim:

“Lloyd did nothing to stop … a sexually explicit e-mail scandal by Port police”.

Source:

Stephen Lamphear, a Rosenberger supporter, contributor and frequent online campaign surrogate, in the Redmond Reporter, 2009-09-28.

Facts:

If Lloyd had simply hopped into his time machine, he could have gone back in time and stopped the e-mails!

Lloyd Hara joined the Port Commission in January 2006.The offending e-mails began circulating in October 2004 and were first discovered in February 2006. Investigation was confined to police Internal Affairs until May, senior staff were briefed (inadequately) in June-July, and Commissioners were not informed until January 2007, and were misled as to the extent and severity of the problem.

Following through on a 2007-03-31 investigative report, the Port replaced its Police Chief, instituted a new Code of Ethics, revised staff training protocols, and promulgated a “zero tolerance” policy — which it applied to an eruption of inappropriate e-mails in another department in July 2008.

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Claim:

“Your next Assessor needs to be someone who’s been an appraiser.”

Source:

Candidate Bob Rosenberger, in numerous public appearances.

Facts:

Not one Assessor in memory has been a former appraiser. The Rosenberger campaign admits “previous holders of this office were not appraisers.”  Mr. Rosenberger emphasizes his appraisal background to deflect from his utter lack of management experience.  He ornaments this claim by flaunting 24 years of service as “Deputy Assessor”.  (The title “Deputy Assessor” automatically applies to any of more than 100 appraisers in the Department, rank novices included.)

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Claim:

“I am endorsed by (mayoral candidate) Joe Mallahan.”

Source:

Candidate Bob Rosenberger, on his website and in campaign flyers.

Facts:

Joe Mallahan: “I’ve never endorsed Mr. Rosenberger… I have no idea where he got that idea.”

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Claim:

“My campaign has already raised over $30,000.”

Source:

Candidate Bob Rosenberger, at legislative district meetings.

Facts:

Mr. Rosenberger is a self-funder, with little popular financial support.  As of 2009-09-23 (by Public Disclosure Commission records), Mr. Rosenberger had deposited $28,200 of his own money and less than $3,000 total from other contributors. Lloyd Hara had deposited $25 out of his own pocket to open the campaign account . . . plus $53,040 from nearly 500 arm’s-length contributors.

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Claim:

Lloyd Hara raised property taxes 20% (or 21%) in 3 years on the Port Commission.

Source:

Candidate Bob Rosenberger, in an e-mail to influential King County Democrats, 2009-06-22, and more recently in The Stranger endorsement interview (and probably other appearances).

Rosenberger supporter Scott Noble, in an e-mail to King County Council members, 2009-06-12, and in phone calls to Democratic Party activists less than 48 hours before his 2009-06-19 sentencing for felony vehicular assault.

LATE UPDATE: In a fresh variation on the hoax, our opponent cites a certain budget document to disprove Lloyd’s stated opposition to the 2007 Port levy increase.  There are at least three things wrong with this picture:

1. The document in question does not refer to 2007 budgets or tax levies. (A candidate with better grasp of the Assessor’s job would know that votes taken in late 2007 determine the 2008 Port budget — and 2008 Port taxes levied by the Assessor.)
2. This budget reduced the levy rate on existing property from 23.17 cents per $1,000 assessed valuation, to 22.50 cents.
3. The budget did pass 3-2, with Lloyd voting in favor, when Commissioners Edwards and Davis  opposed the final budget to protest Lloyd’s successful amendment reducing their proposed levy by millions of dollars.  (See details in Commission minutes cited below.)

Facts:

Our opponent recklessly disregards History . . .  and Math.

Lloyd Hara was elected to the Port Commission in 2005, took office in 2006,  and took part in budget deliberations for 2007, 2008 and 2009. The Port property tax levy did increase from $62.7 million in 2006 to $75.9 million in 2009

That’s a 21% increase (not 19.97% as Mr. Noble precisely miscalculates), but it wasn’t Lloyd Hara who raised these taxes — quite the opposite, as we document year-by-year below. (Incidentally, all but 3.5% of that 21% revenue increase is due to new construction and inflation — not heavier tax burdens on owners of existing property, as we detail further below.)

Budget for 2007: In November 2006 Lloyd opposed the tax increase and voted against final passage (Res. 3568) of the 2007 Budget and corresponding levy authorization (Res. 3571). [ Commission minutes for 2006-11-21 (pdf) ]

FACT: Lloyd Hara opposed the 2007 Port property tax increase. This effort failed on a 3-2 vote.

Budget for 2008: It’s true, as Mr. Noble says, that “Mr. Hara was not among those who voted to keep the levy unchanged” — but it’s terribly misleading.  Hara was not among those who voted thus-and-such, because there was no such vote.  Nobody moved to keep the levy unchanged, but Lloyd in fact helped engineer a small but real reduction in the 2008 levy rate.

His vote for “First Reading” of the proposed budget (a procedural move to keep the process on track) was unfortunately misreported and misunderstood.  At “Second Reading and Final Passage”, the Commission minutes read as follows:

Motion to amend Resolution No. 3590, as follows, by Commissioner Hara:

Regarding the amount of taxes to be levied, the amount of $78,119,004 be replaced by $75,899,369 in both instances mentioned in the proposed resolution. …

Motion to amend Resolution No. 3590 carried as follows: In Favor: Creighton, Fisken, Hara (3) Opposed: Davis, Edwards (2)

FACT: Lloyd Hara moved to reduce the proposed 2008 levy amount, and reduce the levy rate from 2007 levels. This effort succeeded on a 3-2 vote.

Budget for 2009: Lloyd was instrumental in flattening the levy amount and reducing the levy rate.  Commission minutes:

Commissioner Hara moved for Second Reading and Final Passage of Resolution No. 3607, with the following amendment.

‘That on page two of the resolution, the dollar amount for the tax levy noted as $84,010,011 be lowered to $75,899,369 in both sections where mentioned.’

He commented that by so doing, the tax levy would be set at 19.7 cents for 2009. …

Motion carried by the following vote: In Favor: Bryant, Creighton, Hara, Tarleton (4) Opposed: Davis (1)

FACT: Lloyd Hara moved to block any increase in the 2009 levy amount, and reduce the levy rate by 12.5%. This effort succeeded on a 4-1 vote.

So much for History. Here’s a little Math refresher, using data from Department of Assessments reports of “Assessed Valuations and Taxes — State County, EMS and Port District (Real Property Assessed Value)” for 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009.

Factoring out new construction, an average King County resident who held the same property “as-is” from 2006 thru 2009 experienced a 14.2% increase  in Port property taxes (and an estimated 35.1% increase in market value).

Next, we adjust for inflation. [Basis: BLS Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton Consumer Price Index, Feb 2006 to Feb 2009.] In 2006 constant dollars, unchanged real property experienced a 3.5% increase — not 20% — in Port tax burden (against a 22.4% constant-dollar gain in assessed market value). [Request our spreadsheet version for the gruesome details.]

Fact: Port property taxes did not increase dramatically during Lloyd’s tenure as Port Commissioner, and he fought against the increases that did occur.

Summing up: Lloyd Hara was the taxpayers’ champion as King County Auditor and Seattle City Treasurer; he campaigned in 2005 to phase out the Port property tax levy over the long run; and he has moved the Port in that direction. Our opponent and his surrogates commit multiple research, math and reasoning errors in a misguided attack on Lloyd’s positive record.

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