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Washington ranks #27 in new Tax Foundation study of state/local tax burdens

The full study is here.

If college football players are employees, do they owe taxes on their scholarships?

Last week the Director of the National Labor Relations Board’s Chicago region ruled that Northwestern University football players who receive scholarships from the university are “employees” under the terms of the National Labor Relations Act and as such have the legal right to form a union. The Seattle Times story is here; ruling itself is […]

Seattle Times business columnist faults Legislature for failing to renew R&D incentives

Jon Talton, business columnist for the Seattle Times, skipped subtlety and got right to the point in writing about the effects of some Legislative inaction in the recently completed session. Noting that it’s not correct to say lawmakers did nothing, he writes, In fact, legislators delivered a sledgehammer to state competitiveness by killing the nearly […]

How public policy supports low-wage workers and the high cost of the minimum wage

There’s no dearth of good analysis on the effects of raising the minimum wage. Let me call attention to a few of them here. First, a look at the income supports available to low-wage workers, as shown in this graph from a short and incisive AEI blog post.   AEI fellow Robert Doar concludes, So […]

Looking ahead to the McCleary session: Education funding takes center stage

Our new policy brief on the supplemental budget passed by lawmakers notes that the minor changes made this year set the stage for a much more active budget writing session next year. By the end of next month, the Legislature will have to deliver a funding plan for meeting the state Supreme Court’s order to […]

Investment slows when tax policies are uncertain

The National Association of Manufacturers recently conducted a survey of businesses. Here’s the short form. The release today of NAM/IndustryWeek Survey of Manufacturers confirms what manufacturers have long known, the expiration of the on-again and off-again investment tax incentives have companies holding off on making key purchases and thus delays the robust economic growth we […]

Headline writers give lawmakers an incomplete

Detect a pattern? Washington legislature adjourns; punts on big issues Legislative session ends without tackling some major issues State budget OK’d by Legislature, but much left undone Lawmakers pass budget, little else, as session ends

Regional economist sets a low bar. Says a $15 minimum wage is "not outrageous." It's also not a good idea.

Regional economist Dick Conway told KPLU that a $15 minimum wage is “really not that outrageous.” Conway has been on record before; he was the economist Gov. Inslee cited by name at AWB’s legislative day (about 41 minutes in). As a benchmark for setting public policy affecting thousands of businesses and tens of thousands of employees, […]

Today's column on a swift budget resolution and on-time end to the legislative session

In my column, I speculate that the legislative session will end on time as lawmakers are very close to agreement on the basic contours of the budget. Few legislators want a repeat of last year’s marathon. A special session is unnecessary and unlikely. The side that wants the least typically prevails in these negotiations. By […]

A look at why Texas reinstated R&D tax incentives demonstrates why Washington should not let them expire

Effective January 1, 2014, Texas once again offers tax incentives for research and development. An article in Texas CEO magazine last fall celebrated their return. The R&D tax break is back in Texas. …Before passing this law, Texas was one of only a handful of states that did not offer some sort of research and […]