November 3, 2025 Update: We mailed surveys to District 2 voters the week of October 14th, with and we received 8 back in the mail, as well as took 14 surveys at the doors when we saw voters at home. 44 surveys have been received online including from candidate Heather Schiller and a couple of her surrogates. Comments from the District 2 surveys are shared at the bottom of this page as volunteer time allows, and you can click on our final blog post of the campaign season to see survey results including candidate preferences.
Incumbent City Council Member Dennis King voted 100% of the time to raise several taxes and fees over the past year without asking the public. Puyallup Voters for Integrity wants to know if District 2 voters are aware of the new taxes and fees, whether voters agree, and if the tax increases affect who we should support in the current election.
Individual responses will be kept 100% confidential. We will publish blog posts each Tuesday through election day with general survey result updates. Results of the survey will be used to inform PV4I on where to direct future resources to help keep candidates accountable when they are elected to city council. If you are in District 1 or District 3, please click to complete the survey for your area.
Click here to start the District 2 Survey
Text of District 2 Survey:
1. For your responses to count in this poll, please type your name and voting address so we can cross reference with the county’s voter registration list for Puyallup’s District 2. Your responses will be kept 100% private. Click here to take the survey.
2. Dennis King voted to increase city property taxes by 6% in a procedural maneuver called “banking” from years when past councils did not raise taxes, resulting in an increase of our city portion of property taxes from $1.00 per $1,000 house value in 2024, to $1.08 per $1,000 in 2025. He also proposed and voted to increase taxes on our electricity and gas from 4.2% to what is now 6.3% on our bills, and well as increased Xfinity/Comcast fees from 3.4% to 5%. He also voted to cut 7 staff positions including one from the senior center causing the end of Activity Center Rentals to the public, two library positions resulting in the end of external library projects like school collaborations, and four other positions including the elimination of the city’s Economic Development Manager. These cuts to staff unrelated to the police department, and the tax increases, were made to pay for the renovation and 30 year rental of a building on South Hill for a new police station. Adding up itemized costs on the city website, the project is projected to be $73.5 million for Puyallup taxpayers. In comparison, the 2023 bond measure to build a police station and jail on land we still own (and rejected by 55.37% of District 2 voters, with 52.51% voting “no” citywide) would have cost approximately $44 million for the police station (specifically, a projected $35 million for the police station, plus a projected $9 million in shared groundbreaking costs with a jail if they had added that for another projected $31 million). In addition, Dennis King approved of the city sending out a Request for Qualification (RFQ) proposal last month to renovate our current city jail at an unknown cost, despite maintaining throughout the 2021-23 campaigns that it was not feasible to renovate.
Do you agree with all, some, or none of Dennis King’s tax increases and staffing cuts for a rented police station, and more to come for jail renovations? Click here to take the survey.
3. If you would like to have us include reasons for your opinion about King’s tax increases and staffing cuts when we post our next Tuesday survey update, please describe the things you agree with, and what you disagree with. All responses will remain anonymous. Click here to take the survey.
4. Last year, Dennis King worked to circumvent state restrictions on sales tax increases by voting to create a new Transportation Tax District without its own elected commissioners, and instead made city council the de-facto commissioners, then increased sales taxes from 10.1% to 10.2% in the City of Puyallup.
Do you agree with all, some, or none of Dennis King’s actions creating the new tax district without voter approval, that city council should control decisions of the tax district, and that he voted to impose a .1% sales tax increase within city limits? Click here to take the survey.
5. If you would like to have us include reasons for your opinion about King’s support of the Transportation Tax District when we post our next Tuesday survey update, please describe what you agree with, and the aspects you disagree with. All responses will remain anonymous. Click here to take the survey.
6. Dennis King voted to increase city utility fees, and change the frequency of when we city residents have to pay, from every-other-month, to every month, with water rates raised 7.5% from 2024, sewer rates up 5.5%, and the stormwater rate up 16.5% according to footnote on our January and February utility bills. Dennis King also voted to use $600,000 in sewer and stormwater fees for a $5 million project to rebuild one block of 9th Ave SW into a “festival street” for the fair this year, just 4 years after that same block was completely rebuilt, wasting the $2 million spent from our general street fund at that time.
Do you agree with all, some, or none of the utility fee increases, expenditures, and bill frequency decisions Dennis King made over the last 2 years while he took his turn as Deputy Mayor? Click here to take the survey.
7. If you would like to have us include reasons for your opinion about King’s utility fee increases, billing frequency change, and festival street expenditure when we post our next Tuesday survey update, please describe the aspects you agree with, and what you disagree with. All responses will remain anonymous. Click here to take the survey.
8. Heather Schiller, former chair of the Puyallup Planning Commission, is running to replace Dennis King as District 2 council representative. Her website says she’s a career insurance professional promising fiscal responsibility. Please select if you prefer King, Schiller, or neither of the candidates running for Puyallup City Council representing District 2. Click here to take the survey.
9. If you would like to have us anonymously include the reasons for your candidate preference in our next Tuesday survey update, please share: Click here to take the survey.
10. Please include your contact information if you would like to receive final survey results, and stay informed of future Puyallup Voters for Integrity projects: Click here to take the survey.
If you are registered to vote in the City of Puyallup but not in District 2, please click the link below corresponding to your voting district. See map for reference. Puyallup Voters for Integrity will publish blog posts every Tuesday through election day with updates on the district surveys. If you live inside city limits and are not registered to vote, first go to https://www.piercecountywa.gov/6572/Register-to-Vote and then click for the District survey corresponding to your address.
• District 1 Survey – Click if you are registered to vote inside Puyallup City Council District 1 boundaries. The survey focuses on the actions of the incumbent Jim Kastama who is taking a 2 year turn leading the council as mayor. Running to unseat him is candidate Jeff Bennett, a retired Puyallup Police Officer now working in the solar industry who lists fiscal responsibility as the first priority on his website’s issue page.
• District 2 Survey – Click if you are registered to vote inside Puyallup City Council District 2 boundaries. The survey focuses on the actions of the incumbent Dennis King who is taking a 2 year turn on the council as deputy mayor. Running to unseat him is candidate Heather Schiller, former chair of the Puyallup Planning Commission and an insurance industry professional who promises fiscal responsibility second on her website’s issue page after infrastructure improvements.
• District 3 Survey – Click if you are registered to vote in Puyallup City Council District 3 boundaries. The survey focuses on two candidates running for an open seat as incumbent Julie Door is term-limited. Running with no website but claims of support on his facebook page from a majority of other city council members is candidate Mark Crosby, versus candidate Lindsay Smolko who is a STEM Teacher emphasizing on her website equity, inclusivity, and transparency in local government.
District 2 Survey Comments Received Oct 15-Nov 5, 2025
Regarding Question #3 – Responses from candidates, multiple members of the same household, and from officials with vested interests have been withheld for now, but we will include those on election day after self-identifying comments are edited out. Otherwise, these are ALL the comments received via the online District 2 Survey portal for Question #3 through Oct. 20th.
The question: If you would like to have us include reasons for your opinion about King’s tax increases and staffing cuts when we post our next Tuesday survey update, please describe the things you agree with, and what you disagree with:
| 2025-10-16 | I disagree with him raising taxes to complete a project that the voters already said they do not want. I personally had a 20% property tax increase in 1 year and that does not even include the increase to my other bills. This rate of increase is going to be untenable for many Puyallup residents and we are not going to see a benefit to our community from it. This is a very shady way of circumventing the voters. |
| 2025-10-16 | I disagree with Dennis King’s decision to push forward this wasteful spending. In 2025 we have paid nearly $6700.00 in real estate taxes. Every year we brace ourselves for a higher amount. Resulting in a higher mortgage payments. |
| 2025-10-17 | You can only pass the buck for so long. |
| 2025-10-17 | I don’t agree with any of DK’s decisions. |
| 2025-10-17 | Don’t agree with Natural Gas bill and Xfinity fee increases. |
| 2025-10-18 | We voted down the new jail. Under King’s leadership and lack of responsibility to voters, the council voted to ignore voters and spend our funds anyway. |
| 2025-10-18 | We needed a new police station. I’m not in agreement with increasing taxes & cutting staff to get there. |
| 2025-10-18 | He doesn’t care about Taxpayers the Fair is the only Priority…. |
| 2025-10-18 | Retired people can not afford tax increases all the time |
| 2025-10-19 | Taxation with representation is THEFT |
| 2025-10-20 | Our city government is creating a darker future when economic development, library, and senior services are cut, and we are forced to pay for an un-needed jail we voted down twice. Our council did not respect the voters. I am not voting for that future. |
| 2025-10-20 | Why does the city feel they can raise taxes on so many items, and so many ways? We all have to live within our budget, but apparently the city feels they have unlimited money at our expense…. |
| 2025-10-20 | I disagree with all the tax increases. We have too much waste, fraud and abuse and now they want us to give more so they can keep the spending spree going. |
| 2025-10-20 | I disagree with every point of King’s conduct. Tax increases themselves are sometimes necessary: this is not the case here, in direct disregard of a clear voter mandate, and done behind closed doors…. |
| 2025-10-21 | Most of what has been passed is obviously to fill the hole created by the annual expenses of repurposing a rented facility for a police station, rent and maintenance. Also, remodeling the existing police station and jail will need substantial funding as well. The property tax and private utility taxes are being pursued to help offset these additional costs. Most likely the staffing cuts are also helping defray those costs and I oppose this unneccesary expense. Had the public safety building been proposed with the jail, or with minimal holding facilities, it would have passed and could have been built on already City owned property at less expense and we would have owned the building. The public utility taxes are to support those public utilities and have separate, untouchable budgets within the city budget. Assuming that the studies have been completed to support those needs, I do not object to those increases. Finally, I support the establishment of a Transportation Benefit District. I am a supporter of this as it creates a similar fire wall for road projects that public utilites have. Historically, when Council has needed to balance budgets it has been done on the back of the streets budget. This is short sighted and results in backlogs of maintenance and upgrade projects. The 1% sales tax increase will not be enough to fully fund streets projects but will allow streets to have some funds that can be counted on without Council budget interference. |
| 2025-10-22 | I was unaware that voting no for the new police station would mean they would just rent one out for the same cost anyways. Didn’t have the full picture on what they would do. Also what’s the point in asking us citizens to vote if your going to do something that costs the same anyways? |
| 2025-10-23 | The current Puyallup police station is woefully inadequate for our population. But the Pierce County Jail just a few miles away sits largely unused. It makes MUCH more sense to take advantage of our ability to use the County facility than waste millions of taxpayer dollars on building a new police station here. |
| 2025-10-24 | We, the People, did not vote for this! It needs to revert back to what taxes and fees were prior. |
Regarding Question #5 – Responses from candidates, multiple members of the same household, and from officials with vested interests have been withheld for now, but we will include those on election day after self-identifying comments are edited out. Otherwise, these are ALL the comments received via the online District 2 Survey portal for Question #5 through Oct. 20th.
The question: If you would like to have us include reasons for your opinion about King’s support of the Transportation Tax District when we post our next Tuesday survey update, please describe what you agree with, and the aspects you disagree with:
| Oct 16 2025 9:56 AM | This takes agency away from the voters and puts all of the power in the hands of the city council who have already proven that they do not care about the will of the voters. |
| Oct 16 2025 9:49 PM | We enjoy living in Puyallup but it has gotten increasingly more expensive. |
| Oct 17 2025 9:43 AM | If we want nice things then we need to pay for them. |
| Oct 17 2025 12:23 PM | I disagree with the decision to fund festival street at Fair. |
| Oct 17 2025 1:55 PM | No sales tax increase for the City of Puyallup. |
| Oct 18 2025 6:14 PM | Doesn’t care about Taxpayers |
| Oct 18 2025 9:42 PM | Wa is one of the highest tax states in the union , we don’t need more |
| Oct 19 2025 5:15 PM | Taxation with representation is THEFT |
| Oct 20 2025 9:16 AM | I am retired, house paid off, my property taxes now exceed my past mortgage payments. |
| Oct 20 2025 9:33 AM | We are not rich, looks like the city council is following in the footsteps of the state, taxing the death out of all of us. |
| Oct 20 2025 1:27 PM | We should not make it easier to increase taxes, it should be very hard and only when absolutely necessary and approved by the voters. |
| Oct 20 2025 3:22 PM | Sales tax is a regressive form of taxation that disproportionately affects citizens who can least afford it. |
| Oct 21 2025 11:39 AM | See comments above, I support a Transportation Benefit District. The most usual configuration is the board is comprised of Council members wearing TBD hats. It is an important distinction. Doing otherwise would create even more appointed or elected officials, which could work, but is not the usual way of doing this. |
| Oct 22 2025 10:00 AM | I was unaware of this tax increase of already high local taxes. |
| Oct 23 2025 10:08 AM | Creating a new tax district is something that deserves a city-wide discussion & vote. Not a clandestine maneuver done to reduce taxpayer involvement. |
| Oct 24 2025 8:28 AM | Again this needs to be reversed. |
| 2025-10-28 | I am opposed due to the stealthy nature of the actions and the disregard for voters opini I ns already expressed through previous votes. |
| 2025-10-28 | Dennis King’s actions do not line up with the verbiage he expounds in public. Actions speak louder than words. Words are cheap. |
| 2025-11-02 | The people voted this down, due to it being far too expensive. |
| 2025-11-03 | But should not make the jail comfy but only the minimal of updates would be my request. |
Regarding Question #7 – Responses from candidates, multiple members of the same household, and from officials with vested interests have been withheld for now, but we will include those on election day after self-identifying comments are edited out. Otherwise, these are ALL the comments received via the online District 2 Survey portal for Question #7 through Oct. 20th.
The question: If you would like to have us include reasons for your opinion about King’s utility fee increases, billing frequency change, and festival street expenditure when we post our next Tuesday survey update, please describe the aspects you agree with, and what you disagree with.
| Oct 16 2025 9:49 PM | This is all new to me. |
| Oct 17 2025 9:43 AM | I don’t think this was a good idea of city funds. |
| Oct 17 2025 12:23 PM | Disagree with 5million for festival street. |
| Oct 17 2025 1:55 PM | Only if there are no further increases in 2026. If so, then none of the utility fee increases. |
| Oct 18 2025 6:14 PM | They all Lie it’s not about Taxpayers |
| Oct 19 2025 5:15 PM | Makes 0 sense waste of taxpayer dollars |
| Oct 20 2025 9:16 AM | It is too expensive to keep my lawn alive. Paying twice as often does not hide the cost increases. |
| Oct 20 2025 9:33 AM | The street by the fair should have been paid for by the fair. I see it is still not open to the public. What a waist of tax payers money. The original street could also have been a “Festival” street, close both ends, and use it during a special event! Wow so easy and hey look, it would not have cost us anything. |
| Oct 20 2025 1:27 PM | We need an approved master plan for road repairs and upgrades approved by voters. There are so many streets with substantial damage and need of repair, this should not have been the top priority. |
| Oct 20 2025 3:22 PM | The fair should shoulder some of the cost of the upgrades for the festival street. This tiny stretch of road does not benefit the vast majority of citizens. It is a waste of taxpayer money. |
| Oct 20 2025 8:34 PM | The financial mismanagement of this action is really shocking. To waste this money on a street development project, axe the economic development manager position, and raise the taxes noted here without notification smacks of self-enrichment and illegal activity. Inept at best. |
| Oct 21 2025 11:39 AM | Your statement that the street was completely redone is misleading. The storm and sewer lines needed to be replaced prior to the planned festival street project to proceed. The street was rebuilt in a temporary condition while design and funding was developed for the full street. This project was a compromise with the Fair, who wanted to have the city vacate the ROW completely and allow the fair to expand to the north. Public Works leadership … felt that 9th is an important part of the street grid system, relieving traffic flows on other east-west streets and came up with the festival street compromise. Regarding the PUBLIC utility fee increases, those are based on the costs to operate those systems, which includes upgrading them as needed. As noted above, most of the cost of upgrading of 9th came from these fees since that was primarily a storm/sewer project (there may have been water upgrades too, not sure). Stormwater fees are increasing, partly as another way to approach full funding of street budgets. A lot of our new and rebuilt steets are being built as porous pavement streets, which means they are also the stormwater system, which allows some of the stormwater funding to go to those projects. My only caution here is to review the studies which are developed to support these increases. If you don’t agree with those, then maybe there is a reason to oppose them. |
| Oct 21 2025 9:52 AM | I only agree with the billing frequency change—it’s easier to budget for a monthly bill. I disagree with all other changes. |
| Oct 22 2025 10:00 AM | The Puyallup fair makes so much money it is disgusting to ask the local residents to pay for an unnecessary improvement of the fair grounds. They have increased their prices so much the last 5 years, the residents shouldn’t pay a dime for any Puyallup fair renovations. |
| Oct 23 2025 10:08 AM | The Fair Board is already way too powerful by making decisions about the nature of downtown Puyallup property & traffic patterns, leaving local citizens to have to put up with whatever the board decides. |
| Oct 25 2025 2:53 PM | As a hard working resident and Tax payer who works a lot of hours, some us find it difficult to keep up with what the city council is doing. Luckily a neighbour pointed out the extra taxes added onto utility bills. |
| Nov 3 2025 5:56 PM | I don’t want to pay higher taxes for Sales Tax and not know where it is going |
Regarding Question #9 – Candidate Preference: District 2 Comments on Candidate Preference – Heather Schiller vs Dennis King
| 2025-10-16 | Dennis King does what benefits him and his cronies the most, not what the people who elected him want him to do. |
| 2025-10-16 | I prefer a candidate who is fiscally responsible. NOT big business!! |
| 2025-10-17 | After careful consideration I find King to be a better fit. |
| 2025-10-17 | Heather follows through and listens, DK doesn’t. |
| 2025-10-18 | As a result of the lack of respect shown toward the voters, I am now poised against all incumbents in the council. |
| 2025-10-18 | I don’t support GOP candidates. I especially don’t support candidates that want to increase growth but don’t want to grow the infrastructure. Shaw Road is a prime example. |
| 2025-10-18 | Change is Good Need to get rid of the whole Council. |
| 2025-10-18 | Hard to pick between two evils. |
| 2025-10-19 | Time for some changes… |
| 2025-10-20 | Our incumbent city councilman did not respect the voters and their interests by forcing an un-wanted jail, service cuts, and tax increases on us. |
| 2025-10-20 | We need to get rid of several of our council members who are reaping in financial gains for themselves at the expense of the people who reside here. |
| 2025-10-20 | I have never met King, however, Heather has stop by twice and I challenged her on what she would do. She appears aligned with conservative spending principles and transparency. King seems to have no problem spending tax payer money even when they said no to a new police station he went out and leased a new building. That is not transparency and he went against the will of the votes. |
| 2025-10-20 | Schiller has presented no exceptional case for my vote; however, Dennis King has racked up a laundry list of reasons not to be trusted with his position and offers nothing to the city except right-wing fearmongering and limitless funding to police. I will vote against him specifically. |
| 2025-10-21 | I’ve talked with Heather & agree with her stance on issues that affect our community. BUT I would vote for a slug if they were running against King (no offense to Heather or the slug). |
| 2025-10-22 | I don’t know much about her so I cannot endorse her. I want a more fiscally responsible republican in the role. Our taxes seem to increase every year with no benefit. |
| 2025-10-23 | Heather chaired the City’s 20 year (comprehensive) plan that aligned with the standards set by Washington State & Pierce County. Recognizing the importance of the Puyallup Tribe’s history, the critical nature of basic democratic values in the way this city chooses to operate for all its citizens. The city council passed a set of amendments to the charter that takes our community back to the racist ways of the mid 20th century. We must stop looking backward as the Council seems to prefer and really plan for the future. |
| 2025-10-25 | Time for a Change! what’s next more hidden added fees? |
| 2025-10-28 | Her previous experience working in collaborative organizations gives me confidence that she will consider voters opinions and needs. |
| 2025-10-28 | I would like to see community connection vs business promotion like I see with Dennis King. I feel like he is only in this to promote his personal business. He is constantly promoting real estate & businesses – half of the time NOT EVEN IN Puyallup rather in Tehalleh or Tacoma. He isn’t an honest participant at council meetings, he plays on his device and avoids eye contact when he isn’t interested – it’s rude for his constituents! I’m tired of being used as a citizen!! I would like a leader who actually cares about Puyallup and the people who live and work here. It’s a diverse community that deserves equal representation. |
| 2025-10-28 | Heather has the opportunity to gain the public’s trust by lining up actions with her public statements. |
| Oct 28 2025 1:21 PM | I think some of this is Mr. Kings background in a family business where he is able to make unchallenged decisions. He perhaps thinks he knows best and has no experience working in the public sector where the norm is inclusiveness. I was not aware of this (no reporting mechanism in Puyallup makes these actions possible!), but I am aware that my little .12 AC lot is now assessed at over $200K.. |
| Nov 03 2025 5:56 PM | Darn him, didn’t know about festival street |
Please consider a donation of any amount, and invite your friends to like our Facebook page. Sponsored by Puyallup Voters for Integrity, PO Box 42, Puyallup WA 98371. No candidate or party contributes to, authorizes or controls this Political Action Committee which is registered at the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission. 2025 campaign season contributors over the $100 threshold so far include Chris Chisholm, PV4I Treasurer. When facts are presented, we want them to be accurate. If you find any errors, please email us with original-source evidence for correction.
Puyallup Voters for Integrity 