The government of one of America's richest zip codes may soon run out of money to keep the lights on.
CNBC reports that the small town of Medina, Washington will have a budget referendum in November to raise taxes and prevent a budget shortfall in the coming fiscal year.
The idea of Medina being cash-strapped seems counter-intuitive given that both Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos have houses there. What's more, Medina has an average home value of $2.77 million and a median household income of around $186,000.
According to CNBC, the town's troubles are mostly due to Washington's state tax laws.
"The property tax rate in Washington state is set as a rate, not a percentage," CNBC reports. "For Medina, the property tax rate is $7.92925 per $1,000 of assessed value. Of that, only $0.63486 goes to the city of Medina."
If the Medina's taxpayers do not approve the local tax increases, it will run a $500,000 budget shortfall next year and a $3.3 million budget shortfall by 2025.
