Recent Stories with tag lisa brown

Bill Gates, Sr.

Word "leaked" out last night that an income tax initiative could join the marijuana legalization initiative already in progress. Joel Connelly posted the news to Strange Bedfellows, describing I-1077 as a "sweeping plan to cut the state property tax, eliminate the Business and Occupation Tax for small businesses and create an income tax on high income couples."

How times have changed--Connelly also points out that Republican governor Dan Evans tried twice to bring an income tax to Washington in the early '70s. Now, a Democratic governor and legislature won't touch the idea. Bill Gates, Sr., is the figurehead for the initiative; Gates has been unusually willing to argue for higher taxes on the wealthy, so he has probably already lost all the country club friends he's going to.

I-1077 is (like State Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown's earlier, unsupported proposal) a high-earner's tax, applying first a five percent tax to income earned over $200,000 for individuals, or $400,000 for couples. A second bracket of $500,000/$1 million would apply a $15,000/$30,000-plus-nine-percent tax (again, on income earned above that amount). For some reason, Canadian Business Online has the most details on the initiative's actual brackets.

Total revenue could be $1 billion. In return, the Seattle Times says, the initiative "would cut the state property tax by 20 percent" and "end the business-and-occupation tax for small businesses."

The success of the initiative is dependent on first gaining 240,000 signatures between now and July, so that it makes the ballot; then winning in November, and then not being ruled unconstitutional, thanks to a 1933 Washington Supreme Court ruling that interpreted income as a form of property. Under the state constitution, "property taxes must be uniform on every class of property and can't exceed 1 percent of the value of property" (the Seattle Times, again).

The view from the deck at Ivar's on Lake Union

ABC News: Rudy Guede's cell mate claims Guede told him Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito weren't at the house when Meredith Kercher was killed--another man was. Guede says he never said that. Who do you trust, the convicted child killer or the convicted murderer? Once again, Andrea Vogt has all the details.

Here on The SunBreak, Jeremy has been covering Oregon's response to declining state revenues; now Washington Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown has unveiled her idea for a high earner's income tax referendum--letting the public vote on it in November. The initial reaction from the legislature is that they won't be rushed into anything--except of course deep cuts to basic services and health care for the working poor, and increases in the regressive sales tax that will hit the working poor hardest.

An income tax of 4.5 percent would be assessed on any income over $200,000 for an individual, $400,000 for a married couple. The state sales tax would drop to six cents. For instance, the Port of Seattle CEO makes $319,000. If he were single, he'd pay 4.5 percent of $119,000, or $5,355 in income taxes.

TechFlash reported on Google's acquisition of Picnik, the hometown photo editing service. Starbucks tried to defuse the uproar over its handgun-agnostic position. Tom Douglas can't wait to feed the Amazonian masses down in South Lake Union....

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