Income tax debate opens up in WA Legislature
Supporters see the bill as a step toward reengineering a state tax code that favors the rich and forces lower-income residents to pay an outsized share of their income in taxes and fees. “We have a broken, upside-down tax system that we have been stuck with for 90 years. We have a generational opportunity in front of us to change that trajectory and to make the whole system fairer,” Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle, told reporters Tuesday. Pedersen said he and other Democrats are “interested in shifting the tax system, shifting the tax burden so that it’s paid by wealthier people and large businesses who have the capacity to pay.” Continue reading at Washington State Standard. (Bill Lucia)
Opinion: Pro: Income tax would fix WA’s broken, unfair system
Asking the ultrawealthy to pay a little more would begin to fix a nearly century-old structural problem in our state’s tax system. The essential services we all depend on will continue to face cuts in the state budget if we continue to rely on high sales and property taxes, which strain family budgets and limit the state’s flexibility. That’s why as part of the Millionaires Tax, we will also eliminate sales taxes on personal care products, such as shampoo and deodorant; reduce taxes on small businesses; and expand the Working Families Tax Credit. These ideas are baked right into the bill, so when the Millionaires Tax goes into effect, every Washingtonian will get a tax cut. (Sen. Jamie Pedersen) Continue reading at The Seattle Times. (Ken Lambert)
With rally and ‘listening sessions’, WA initiative supporters deliver their message
On Monday, initiative opponents spoke with reporters on Zoom to discuss the flaws in each ballot measure. Much of the conversation centered on how the measure concerning athletes would harm transgender youth and how, in their view, it’s likely unconstitutional. If passed, female students wishing to compete in sports would need their biological sex verified by a healthcare provider. Opponents say the state Supreme Court would find this unconstitutional because it is an unnecessary invasion of privacy…“What we’re seeing is truly hatred,” said Danni Askini, executive director of the Seattle-based advocacy group Gender Justice League. “Trans people don’t have a lobby, they don’t have the ability to really fight back and so they make a very easy target.” Continue reading at Washington State Standard. (Aspen Ford)
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