According to most sources, no formal action has been taken so far.

Nevertheless, most sources also say permanent expansion of foot-ferry service on Lake Washington is not going to happen any time soon.

The expansion was slated to include a run between Kenmore and Seattle, most likely to the University of Washington. Probably not surprisingly, there are two words that come up again and again in the apparent demise of the foot ferries: money and politics.

“The county is in serious financial trouble. There’s a lot of programs facing … massive cuts,” said Kenmore Mayor David Baker, who was a big proponent of the ferries.

“King County must make the same kinds of choices taxpayers are making when it comes to which priorities to pay for when there is less money to go around,” said King County Councilman Larry Phillips in a press release.

Phillips also serves on the King County Ferry District Board, and on July 23 introduced a resolution asking the ferry board to reduce to zero the district’s tax collections so that money could be redirected into Metro Transit bus operations.

In a separate release, Phillips said Metro Transit is facing a $200 million budget shortfall.

Phillips is running for King County Executive, as is county Councilman Dow Constantine, traditionally probably the strongest supporter of expanding ferry runs to Lake Washington.

Constantine has come under heat in some quarters for alleged arm-twisting on council votes related to the ferry.

Neither the offices of Phillips nor Constantine returned requests for comment.

King County Public Information Officer Al Sanders referred calls about the ferry issue to Constantine’s office. Sanders did say the ferry board initially took no action on Phillips’ proposal to cut the ferry tax. On July 28, Phillips was calling for a special meeting of the ferry board to deal with the tax issue.

Members of the King County Council who sit on the ferry board are on summer recess for the first two weeks of August and the next regular ferry district meeting isn’t scheduled until November.

The ferry board was unable to consider Phillips’ proposal at its July 27 meeting because of the absence of several members, according to a King County Council release.

On July 30, several county council members floated a plan to help close the Metro budget gap. Among other steps, including fare hikes, the plan echoed Phillips’ call for redirecting ferry money into bus lines.

In the meantime, sitting on the Metro Transit board, Baker said an audit of the bus system’s books is due in September. He said that audit may shed some light on the entire situation.

In any case, Baker believes demonstration runs of the foot ferries, planned for this fall, may go on as scheduled as those runs already are included in the county budget. Still, Baker admitted just the idea of foot ferries rankles in some quarters.

“There are people who love the ferries, there are people who hate the ferries.”