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House Tax Structure Work Group Final Report

The 2018 legislature established the House Tax Structure Work Group, which held public meetings over the summer in Spokane, Yakima, Vancouver and Seattle. This work group had two members, Representatives Noel Frame and Terry Nealey. The work group’s final report contains four recommendations, which, in summary, are: The Legislature should reauthorize the Tax Structure Work […]

When evaluating the tax structure, don’t forget about federal taxes and state spending

Last week the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) released a new version of “Who Pays: A Distributional Analysis of the Tax Systems in All 50 States.” As in the 2015 version, ITEP says that Washington has the country’s most regressive state and local tax system. Opportunity Washington writes about it here. This summer […]

New policy brief: Initiative 1631: Putting a Price on Carbon

This November, voters are being asked to approve Initiative 1631, which would impose a fee on fossil fuels sold or used in the state. The fee would be based on the quantity of greenhouse gases released when the fuel is combusted. The initial rate for the fee would be $15 per carbon dioxide equivalent metric […]

A couple of tribal tax cases have implications for state revenues

Yesterday, a U.S. District Court judge dismissed a case in which the Tulalip Tribes argued that Washington and Snohomish County have no right to collect retail sales and use, business and occupation, or personal property taxes from non-Indian owned businesses located in Quil Ceda Village (a shopping area on tribal land). This is good news […]

New policy brief: I-1634: Nipping Local Food Taxes in the Bud

Initiative 1634 will be on the ballot in November. It would ban local taxes on groceries (except insofar as they are subject to general state and local retail sales taxes). Although the impetus for the initiative is Seattle’s sweetened beverage tax, that particular tax would be allowed to continue. No other jurisdictions are considering grocery […]

New special report: Getting the Tax Structure Right: It’s Complicated

Read the full report here. Briefly: Charges that Washington has the nation’s most regressive state and local tax structure stem from a 2015 report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). The ITEP analysis contains a number of methodological flaws that lead it to overstate the tax burden on low-income households nationally and, […]

Will the head tax return to Seattle?

From 2007 to 2009, Seattle levied an employee head tax in the amount of $25 per full-time, full-year employee. In Nov. 2017, the Seattle City Council rejected a proposal to impose a new head tax that would bring in $25 million a year, which would have been used to help fund subsidized housing. Later that […]

New policy brief: Capital Gains Tax is a Not-So-Capital Idea

A capital gains tax (HB 2967) is currently under consideration in the Legislature. The questionable constitutionality of the tax makes it a risky source of revenue, whether for the schools as previously proposed or property tax relief now. Moreover, should the legislation somehow clear the high constitutional bar, the volatility of the tax would add […]

Seattle’s 2018 work program includes several fiscal and employment policy issues

Last week the Seattle City Council adopted its work program for 2018. The Council’s committees will be working on several issues that may be of interest, including the items below. The Finance & Neighborhoods Committee will “develop and oversee the contract with a consultant to study the feasibility of establishing a City-owned public bank.” (This […]

U.S. Supreme Court takes up two cases that could have major impacts on Washington’s budget

On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that this year it will hear two cases that will be closely watched by Washington’s Legislature. First, the Court will hear South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. This is about whether states can require out-of-state retailers to collect sales taxes. In 1992, the Court held that states can only […]