Washington’s new capital gains tax goes before state Supreme Court
Progressives in Washington have been anticipating this hearing for years in the hope that the state Supreme Court will bless a capital gains tax as lawful – and perhaps even overturn a prior court precedent that has long stymied a personal income tax. Democratic lawmakers have long assailed Washington’s tax system – which doesn’t have a personal income tax – as regressive. Since state revenue depends so heavily on sales and business taxes, it means people who earn the least ultimately pay a higher share of their income in tax. Democrats in the Legislature passed the capital gains tax in 2021 and Gov. Jay Inslee signed it into law. The new law levies a 7% tax on profits from selling assets like bonds and stocks. The tax would apply only to the portion of the profits from those sales that exceed $250,000 by an individual or married couple. Continue reading at Crosscut. (Jovelle Tamayo)

What new federal money will mean for WA ferries
The federal government has awarded Washington State Ferries $4.9 million to help build an electric-ferry charging station for the busy Mukilteo-Clinton line, and $5 million for dock improvements to improve transit and pedestrian connections at Southworth. Those grants, along with $1.7 million for WSF to buy modern ferry-payment software and systems, that make credit-card transactions quicker, were announced Thursday morning by the Federal Transit Administration. FTA’s latest ferry spending represents a modest sum that might help Puget Sound agencies get moving on new projects, and displays the federal government’s new zeal to subsidize cleaner transportation. Continue reading at Seattle Times. (Stefanie Loh)

What if voting were not just a right, but a legally required duty?
Numerous Democrats in the Washington Legislature are backing a new proposal to make voting in elections compulsory. Citizens are required by law to cast ballots in about 25 counties, but in no other U.S. states. State Sen. Sam Hunt (D-Olympia) said he got the idea for what he calls “universal civic duty voting” from a recently published book titled “100% Democracy” by E.J. Dionne and Miles Rapoport. Democratic Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig of Spokane mailed Hunt a copy last year. “As a member of the Senate, once the majority leader sends you something, it sort of gets your attention,” Hunt said in an interview. “So, I read the book and it piqued an interest with me.” So much so, Hunt had the concept of compulsory voting turned into a legislative proposal. Billig’s enthusiasm separately inspired state Rep. Sharlett Mena (D-Tacoma) to introduce an identical version of the legislation in the state House. Continue reading at KUOW. (Wikimedia Commons)