Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy said the county needs to pass a special sales tax increase to pay for mental health services and that a lack of treatment options for people with mental health problems is contributing to rising homelessness.
A tally of homeless people in Pierce County that was just released showed a 37 percent increase from a year ago. King County is also struggling with rising numbers of people sleeping on the streets.
Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy said it’s been difficult to get the county council to take action.
"Eighty percent of these people are from our communities across Pierce County," she said. "There are those on the council who think, all these people come from outside the county and we just need to swoop them up and put them on a bus and send them away."
McCarthy said the county council should pass a special 0.1 percent sales tax for mental health services. The city of Tacoma has already done that.
If the county approves the additional sales tax, it would generate about $9.5 million a year, according to a county finance official. Pierce County Council Member Derek Young said in a statement that he will sponsor adoption of the mental health tax.
