Tag Archives: income tax

The Olympia Coalition for a Fair Budget Protests Budget Cuts During National Day of Action

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Members and supporters of the Olympia Coalition for a Fair Budget, which meets weekly at the Evergreen State College, held a mock funeral for public education yesterday as part of a nationwide day of action centered in California. Students and other community members marched a coffin up the steps of the capitol building, some somber and silent, others wailing and crying. The performance was halted at the doors to the capitol, where State Troopers informed students that they could not bring the large coffin, with the words “RIP Education” written across it, into the capitol building. The group abandoned their coffin, bags and signs at the door and quietly filed into the rotunda, then the Senate gallery.

Once in the gallery the group stood, clad in black funeral garb, as the Senate debated a bill proposing changes to a constitutional bail setting issue. They began humming and then singing a parody of “Amazing Grace,” with lyrics that conveyed the gloom of the dying public higher education system. Lieutenant Governor Brad Owens attempted to silent the group by rapping the gavel and calling on the Sergeant in Arms to remove them. However, the group was permitted to finish their song and filed out peacefully at the end. Following their performance, several members of the Senate applauded, some of them standing to do so.

Following the demonstration, the group convened outside the North entrance of the capitol building to applaud themselves and make plans to testify in the Senate Ways & Means hearing, to be held at 4:30 pm, on a proposed tax of high incomes. Some dozen students were present for the hearing, with around eight testifying in support of the bill. Because the public hearing was announced a mere three hours prior, the bulk of those testifying in support of the bill were those students and community members who had participated in the demonstration and were already on campus. Those opposing the bill included lobbyists for private interest, citizens concerned with already high taxes, and a representative from the Evergreen Freedom Foundation, who highlighted the inability of concerned parties to make it to Olympia to testify in the short amount of time provided.

Full video of the gallery performance


(beginning at 1:42:30)

and alumna & student testimony in Ways & Means

(beginning at 39:15)

New Revenue Sought by Closing Loopholes, Taxing Income

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On Friday three bills constituting an overhaul of Washington State’s tax system were introduced – two in the Senate (SB 6713 and SB 6714) and one in the House of Representatives (HB 3070). The Senate bills were introduced at the request of the Washington State Department of Revenue by Ways and Means co-chair Senator Rodney Tom and co-sponsored by several of his colleagues in committee.

Senate Bill 6713 effectively ends exemptions on sales of certain livestock equipment, as well as on the compensation of certain corporate officers, which the bill does not recognize as a legal exemption, but as “a widespread misunderstanding among corporate directors that the business and occupation tax does not apply to the compensation they receive for serving as a director of a corporation.” The bill proposes to clear up this misunderstanding by holding corporate officers responsible for their obligation via the Department of Revenue.

Senate Bill 6174 promises to close tax loopholes on real estate transactions and the use of certain digital materials (including downloads, software and online video services). The closing of these loopholes will be facilitated by an interest rate on all unpaid taxes.

House Bill 3070 levies an tax on the income of individuals in the State of Washington by way of a graduated scale based on earned income and marital status. Unlike previous proposals that sought to only tax incomes in the six figures, HB 3070 levies a tax on all eligible earners. The following tables break down the tax proposal:

For married taxpayers filing jointly:

If taxable income is:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The tax is:
Not over $49,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2% of taxable income
Over $49,900 but not over $120,650 . . . . . . . . . . . .$1,098 plus 3.5% of the excess over $49,900
Over $120,650 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$3,574 plus 6.0% of the excess over $120,650

For “head of household:”

If taxable income is:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The tax is:
Not over $37,425 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.2% of taxable income
Over $37,425 but not over $90,488 . . . . . . . . . . . . $823 plus 3.5% of the excess over $37,425
Over $90,488 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $2,681 plus 6.0% of the excess over $90,488

And for single or married filing separately:

If taxable income is:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The tax is:
Not over $24,950 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2.2% of taxable income
Over $24,950 but not over $60,325 . . . . . . . . . . . . .$549 plus 3.5% of the excess over $24,950
Over $60,325 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,787 plus 6.0% of the excess over $60,325

Each of the bills was referred to fiscal committees – Ways and Means in the Senate and Finance in the House.