A plan to spend up to $335 million on flood control was approved Tuesday by the King County Council, although a decision on exactly how much to spend on the program -- and how much to tax for it -- won't be made until later.

"I think most of us agree we need to take some action to protect people from flooding, but it needs to be reasonable," Councilman Reagan Dunn, R-Bellevue, said. "This is a game plan."

Under the proposal, put forth by King County Executive Ron Sims in July, the county would spend $179 million to $335 million over 10 years on levees, acquisition of property in flood plains and other projects on rivers and streams in the low-lying parts of the county. The program is designed to catch up after years of inadequate financing of maintenance and repairs, according to Sims' office.

The money would be raised by creating a countywide flood control district and imposing a property tax of $15 to $30 a year for an average home, depending on how much work is undertaken. The tax could be adopted by the council, without voter approval, said Grover Cleveland of the county's Department of Natural Resources and Parks. Property owners in the Green River flood control district already pay a tax, and they would not be assessed an additional amount.

If it's approved, the plan would qualify property owners for flood-insurance discounts and make the county eligible for more federal assistance, Cleveland said.

The projected effects of global warming intensify the need for the project, professor Richard Palmer of the University of Washington said.

By 2050, autumn rainfall is expected to increase by 25 percent, he said.

"Novembers have become wetter and wetter," he said. "It's a little bit frightening to think that our worst events are going to get even worse."

MORE

To learn more about the proposed flood-control plan, visit goto.seattlepi.com/r508.