Truly unbelievable. A vote was held in the Senate to impose an income tax ahead of the March 17 sales forecast and budget release. The Senate took the first step to introduce an income tax with a vote on Saturday between 25 and 24 on SB 5096 (income tax on capital gains). The House is expected to quickly approve the bill and send it to the governor. However, the emergency clause has been removed, meaning lawyers will have time to perfect their legal information, with the expected legal action making a detour for a referendum vote this fall.
Despite irrefutable evidence from the IRS and all other state tax offices, proponents of this tax refuse to refer to it as income tax. They insist on having found a way to tax capital gains that no other tax professional in the world knows about – as "excise duty".
Several changes have been proposed to allow proponents to test their belief that this is really an "excise tax":
- Sen. Braun Amendment: Prohibits the Attorney General from asking the court to reconsider its previous decisions declaring income to be property.
- Sen. Braun Amendment: "Eliminates the requirement that taxpayers owed government taxes also file a copy of their federal income tax return."
Each of these amendments failed to vote.
Other changes were also offered to provide more truthfulness in advertising on the bill:
- Sen. Short amendment: "Changes the title of the bill to:" Exemption from capital gains tax "."
- Sen. Brief amendment: "Indicates that the references in the invoice to Title 26 of the Federal Tax Act refer to the Federal Income Tax Acts."
- Sen. Brown Amendment: "Adds a referendum clause and a new section listing previous decisions to introduce an income tax."
- Sen. Fortunato Amendment: "Indicates that the state capital gains tax approved in Section 103 of this Act shall in no way be construed as authorizing cities or counties to introduce a local version of the tax."
- Sen. Wagoner amendment: "Delays the date of entry into force of the law until July 1, 2025 so that the legislature can review the recommendations of the tax structure working group before a state tax is levied on capital gains."
These amendments were also rejected.
Budget is balanced, Congress is sending billions more COVID relief to the state, revenue is currently projected to grow more than 7%, and the March 17 forecast is expected to see another sharp increase in revenue. Despite this positive budget outlook, the Senate passed a constitutionally suspicious income tax on capital gains with 25-24 votes on a Saturday. Truly unbelievable.
additional information
Editorial coverage of proposals for capital gains tax
WA Capital Receives Income Tax Proposal: What You Need To Know!
A capital gains tax is an income tax: irrefutable proof in about two minutes (short video)
BAD POLICIES: An Income Tax On Capital Gains For Washington (Short Video)