Executive Summary
Establishing a tax on millionaires
Background
Income Tax
- Federal income taxes start with your adjusted gross income (AGI), which is your total taxable income minus certain allowed deductions.
- The U.S. uses tax brackets, meaning different portions of your income are taxed at different rates.
-
- There are seven tax rates, ranging from 10% to 37%.
- Approximately 41 states impose a broad-based individual income tax
-
- Currently, Washington is one of the 9 states that do not tax individual income
Working Families Tax Credit
- In 2021, the Legislature established the Working Families Tax Credit (WFTC) Program. It provides a refundable credit for retail sales or use tax paid by low-to-moderate income Washington residents who meet certain eligibility requirements. Individuals may apply for any WFTC payments for which they were eligible, but did not claim, for up to three years.
Summary
- Beginning January 1, 2028, a 9.9% tax is imposed on individuals with taxable earnings of over $1 million per year.
- Revenue from this tax would fund the expansion of the Working Families Tax Credit, K-12 education, health care, and other human services.
Key Points
Early analysis shows this could raise nearly $3.7 billion a year from only 20,000 of the wealthiest people statewide,
roughly half a percent of the working population in Washington.
Follow this link for more information.
Ways to Get Involved
Steps to Get Started
- Learn where the bill is in the legislative process.
- If there is an upcoming hearing, decide how you would like to get your voice heard and take action.
- If there is not an upcoming hearing, or if you want to supplement your advocacy, call or write your legislators.
- Spread the word and get other people on board.
Participating in a Hearing
Sign in Pro, Con, or Other
This is when individuals, advocates, and organizations make their position on a particular bill known for the record. This is particularly powerful in large numbers. Many organizations will send out Action Alerts asking people to sign in Pro or Con on a bill.
Submit Written Testimony
Submitting written testimony is a great way not only to make your position known to legislators but also to explain why in more detail. This is a good option if you don’t want to speak in front of others. People also like to offer more nuance to their position by writing.
Testify Virtually
Since COVID, many legislators are allowing remote/virtual testimony for bill hearings, as it greatly expands access to the legislative process across the state. For this, individuals usually have between 1-2 minutes to state their opinion on a bill in front of the legislative committee on Zoom.