Neighborhood House joins many community organizations, labor unions, and elected leaders across our state to protect progressive revenue in Washington. Washington state has the second most regressive tax structure in the nation – where the lowest income Washingtonians pay the greatest percentage of their income in taxes while the highest income Washingtonians pay the least. During the last legislative session, Washington state passed one of the biggest pieces of progressive revenue to date, the Millionaire’s Tax.
This small step towards an equitable tax structure is under attack. Leading the effort to roll it back is billionaire hedge fund manager Brian Haywood and his PAC, Let’s Go Washington. Let’s Go Washington is behind I-645, I-638, and I-001. All are poorly written, bad for kids, and bad for our community.
I-645 would repeal the Millionaire’s Tax. SB 6346 was signed into law last session and requires people to pay a tax of 9.9% on their taxable Washington earnings above $1 million. For example, if a household earns $1,500,000 a year, the 9.9% tax rate would only apply to the $500,000 above that $1 million.
The Millionaire’s Tax would raise $3.5 billion per year for K-12 and higher education, early learning, healthcare, and human services. It will also fund new programs such as free school meals in K-12, expand eligibility for the Working Families Tax Credit, and increase the income threshold for anyone who qualifies for SNAP or TANF. In addition, SB 6346 cuts sales taxes on diapers (for all ages), grooming, hygiene products, and over the counter drugs and provides a B&O tax credit for small businesses.
This is all at risk if I-645 passes.
Let’s Go Washington is pushing two other divisive initiatives to get sympathetic voters against the Millionaire’s Tax to the polls. These initiatives are I-638, which requires sex verification for females participating in school sports, and I-001, which looks to remove basic protections on student privacy in their schools.
I-638 is an extreme measure, the most extreme of its kind in the country. It would require tens of thousands of elementary, middle, and high school girls to undergo intrusive, potentially harmful genital exams every year as a new part of sports physicals. This rule only applies to girls and not boys. It takes decision-making power away from parents, schools, and athletic associations with a statewide ban aimed at excluding trans girls from participating on any teams at any level. But the result is more barriers for all girls to participate in sports. This initiative violates the body autonomy of girls and their ability to participate in school sports and only looks to exclude a tiny group of vulnerable children under the false pretense of “protecting girls’ sports.”
I-001 would restrict students’ access to help for issues like depression, sexual assault, domestic violence, bullying, and anxiety. Parents have the right to know what’s going on with their children at school. But while most parents are loving and supportive, the sad reality is that not all children are safe at home. I-001 would allow sensitive information about children experiencing abuse to be handed over to their parental abusers. If passed, this initiative will lead to worsening mental health in children and teens. It will put school counselors and teachers in a position where they will knowingly put both LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ students at risk of potential harm and at a higher risk of homelessness. This measure does not take these very real consequences into account.
Please vote no on all three of these measures: I-645, I-638, and I-001.