WA State Figures Show Repeal of Cap Gains Won’t ‘Blow Hole’ in Budget

Initiative 2109 is one of six from Let's Go WA that have been officially certified to be voted on in November. It would repeal the state's controversial,  and in the eyes of legal experts, un-Constitutional capital gains tax.

Even the IRS considers capital gains as income, therefore the tax likely violates the WA state Constitution, despite a ruling from the State Supreme Court. The Constitution forbids any income tax,  and ten times the proposal has been defeated by WA voters.

 WA State Democratic Majority leader makes error-filled claim

Senator Andy Billig (D-Spokane) said recently if I-2109 passes, it will 'blow a hole' in the state's budget, namely education funding.  He claimed it would hurt education and the state's finances.

However, the Washington Policy Center's Paul Guppy,  using the state's own revenue figures and forecasts, has pointed out this week that is not true. According to WA state revenue numbers, his WPC report says:

"State revenue will continue to increase by billions of dollars every year under the current tax system, without the capital gains income tax.

The amount of money taken by the state has doubled in ten years (up over 100%, while CPI inflation went up 34%), and is projected to continue increasing in future years"

He said the same budget, which moves upward, is also reflected in K-12 spending, which has more than doubled in the last ten years. An average of $19K is spent per student in public schools, K-12. And, public school employees (teachers) are among the highest paid public workers in the state.

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Guppy made a strong analogy to point out the absurdity of Billig's claim. He said it's like an executive asking for a bonus of $50K, getting $45K of it, then claiming they had "lost" $5,000.

The WPC also provided this chart showing how state spending has grown significantly, especially since Gov. Inslee took office.