Yesterday the state Supreme Court declined to immediately review the King County Superior Court ruling that invalidated the Seattle income tax ordinance.

The ordinance was passed in July 2017 and declared void in November 2017. The Superior Court judge found that the tax was not authorized by the Legislature and that cities are prohibited by statute from imposing a tax on net income. The City of Seattle appealed directly to the state Supreme Court, in the hopes that the Supreme Court would address the constitutionality of income taxes. With yesterday’s order, the case will instead go to the Court of Appeals.

In a policy brief last year, we argued that Seattle should abandon the appeal: “There is, after all, a well-established process for changing the state constitution and state statute. It requires legislative action and voter approval; that is, the power of persuasion.”

According to the Seattle Times story on yesterday’s order, “City Attorney Pete Holmes said the city wouldn’t be giving up.”