The article also conflates the tax increase with the cost of the plan, which are two entirely separate things. Whether the government immediately raises taxes enough to cover the whole tab or does it at some later point doesn't really matter -- the people will eventually pay (this is also the case for our massive federal debt). In this case, Seattle is covering under a third of the cost with their up-front tax increase, so for the article to suggest that the tax increase should be the number that folks consider is disingenuous at best.