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2024 Washington Initiative 2109

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Initiative No. 2109 (I-2109) is a ballot initiative in the U.S. State of Washington that will appear on the ballot on November 5, 2024. The initiative was brought to the state legislature by Let's Go Washington, a Redmond-based political action committee founded by Brian Heywood.[1][2] The initiative would repeal SB 5096, which created a 7% capital gains tax for Washington state in 2021.[1][3]

The effort to repeal I-2109 began in 2023, following a ruling of the Washington Supreme Court upholding the constitutionality of the capital gains tax.[2][4] I-2109 collected a total of 436,474 signatures, and was ultimately certified and introduced to the legislature for their 2024 legislative session.[5] Senate majority leader Andy Billig (D) and Speaker of the House Laurie Jenkins (D) announced on February 16, 2024 that the state legislature would not hold hearings on the initiative. [6] This decision not to take action on the referred initiative placed the decision on the question to the November 2024 general election.

Background

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The genesis for what eventually became the capital gains tax was proposed in the budget presented by Gov. Jay Inslee on December 17, 2020. The 2021 budget proposal included a proposed 9% tax on capital gains, something Democrats in the state legislature had sought to pass in previous years but has lacked the votes to pass.[7] The proposed tax was first introduced into the state Senate, with a first reading and referral to the Ways & Means committee occurring on January 11th, 2021.[8] The revised proposal was passed from the committee on February 16th, and then passed the rules committee two days later.[8] The revised tax proposal, which reduced the tax rate from 9% to 7%, passed the Senate on March 6th after what the Seattle Times described as a "fierce debate" by a vote of 25-24.[8][9] The legislation was given a first reading in the House on March 9th, passing out of the Finance committee on April 16th and passing the state legislature on April 21st by a vote of 52-46.[8][10] At that time, the legislature removed language from the bill that would have referred the capital gains tax bill to the voters as a referendum.[10]

Governor Jay Inslee signed SB 5096 into law on May 4th, 2021,and the capital gains tax became effective on July 25th, 2021.[8][11] However, before the law had been signed, a group of seven state residents, working with a Seattle law firm and the conservative think tank, the Freedom Foundation, filed a law suit in the Douglas County Superior Court claiming that the capital gains tax constituted an illegal income tax.[12] A second lawsuit was filed on May 20th, 2021 by former Attorney General Rob McKenna, also in Douglas County Superior Court.[13] The two cases were consolidated and, on March 2nd, 2022, Douglas County Superior Court Judge Brian Huber sided with the plaintiffs and struck down the capital gains tax as an illegal income tax.[14] On appeal, the state Supreme Court overturned the district court ruling in a 7-2 decision, upholding the constitutionality of the capital gains tax as an excise tax.[15] On January 24, 2024, the US Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of the state Supreme Court decision.[16]

The libertarian-leaning hedge fund manager Brian Heywood spearheaded a second effort to remove the capital gains tax by initiative, founding and bankrolling the Let's Go Washington PAC to coordinate the gathering of signatures after failing to qualify any initiatives related to the capital gains tax in 2022 on a volunteer basis.[2][17] The capital gains tax repeal initiative, along with five other initiative efforts, submitted their signatures to the Secretary of State in December of 2023 as initiatives to the legislature.[18][19][20] The Secretary of State's office certified that a sufficient number of signatures had been gathered on January 23, 2024, which referred the issue to the state legislature.[21] On January 24th, I-2109 was introduced to the House (referred to the Finance committee) and the Senate (referred to the Ways & Means committee), but no subsequent action was taken on the initiative by those committees.[22] Rep. Jim Walsh (R) was the sponsor for the bill in the legislature.[23] Democratic leaders told reporters in February that the state legislature would not be moving forward with I-2109, putting the initiative on track for a public vote on November 5th, 2024.[23][24]

Language and Impact

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I-2109 places the following question before the citizens of Washington: 

Initiative Measure No. 2109 concerns taxes.

This measure would repeal an excise tax imposed on the sale or exchange of certain long-term capital assets by individuals who have annual capital gains of over $250,000.

Should this measure be enacted into law? Yes [ ] No [ ]

In 2023, the first full year of implementation for SB 5096, the tax brought in $786 million in new revenues to the state, though as of May 15th, 2024 the tax is estimated to have brought in $433 million for 2024.[25] The majority of the money brought in under the capital gains tax comes from King County, with about 84% of all net payments coming from King County residents.[26] The tax has been paid by a total of 3,354 individuals, with the top 10 tax payers comprising 56% of the total amount of taxes paid to date.[26] The state Office of Financial Management estimates that a repeal of SB 5096 would cut about $833 million dollars in anticipated tax revenues from the projected 2025 budget.[27] Supporters and opponents of I-2109 have clashed over whether a 2022 law covering the impact initiatives could have on the state budget applied to this initiative, though the state Supreme Court ruled in August that the law permitted disclosure of budget impacts in the official explanations of the initiative in the November voter's guide.[28][29]

Support for I-2109

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As of September 17th, 2024, Let's Go Washington[30] and the Taxpayers Accountability Alliance are registered as sponsors of the initiative.[31] Additionally, the Association of Washington Businesses has endorsed I-2109.[32] Representative Jim Walsh (R), the current chair of the Republican Party of Washington, is also a supporter of I-2109.[4][33]

Opposition to I-2109

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As of September 17th, 2024, the No on 2109 Committee, Stop Greed PAC, the SEIU 775 Ballot Fund, Protect Washington, Fuse Voters, and the 45th District Democrats are registered as opponents of the initiative.[31] [34]Additionally, the progressive-aligned Invest in Washington Now PAC has been vocal in their opposition to I-2109, as has the Children's Alliance.[4][35]

Public Opinion on I-2109

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Poll Sponsor Dates Margin of Error Mode Sample Size Support Oppose Undecided
Elway[36] Cascade PBS Sept. 3-Sept. 6, 2024 ±5% Live Phone & Text 403 RV 30% 52% 18%
SurveyUSA[37] Seattle Times, King 5, & UW Center for an Informed Public July 10-July13, 2024 ±5% Online 708 LV 46% 23% 31%
Scott Rasmussen National Survey[38] May 20-May 23, 2024 ±3.5% 800 RV 57% 32% 12%
Elway Cascade PBS May 13-May 16, 2024 ±5% Live Phone & Text 403 RV 47% 36% 17%
GBAO Strategies[39] Defend Washington April 11-April 14, 2024 ±4% Live Phone & Text 600 LV 32% 62% 6%

Results

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I-2109 will be decided during the Washington state general elections on November 5th, 2024.

External Sources

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I-2109 Ballot Letter (via the WA Secretary of State)

Initiative Measure No. 2109 (via the WA Secretary of State)

References

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  1. ^ a b "WA lawmakers decided to tax the rich. Poll shows how voters feel about that". The Seattle Times. 2024-07-23. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  2. ^ a b c Deng, Grace (2024-05-06). "WA decides: Initiative 2109 to repeal the state's capital gains tax • Washington State Standard". Washington State Standard. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  3. ^ "Washington Initiative 2109, Repeal Capital Gains Tax Initiative (2024)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  4. ^ a b c "What do Washington voters need to know about Initiative 2109?". krem.com. 2024-07-24. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  5. ^ "Submitted Signature Statistics | WA Secretary of State". www.sos.wa.gov. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  6. ^ "Sen. Billig, Speaker Jinkins: Three initiatives will have hearings, three will not". Washington Senate Democrats. 2024-02-16. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  7. ^ "Inslee unveils Washington budget proposal with taxes on capital gains and health insurers to fund COVID-19 recovery". The Seattle Times. 2020-12-17. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Washington State Legislature". app.leg.wa.gov. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  9. ^ "Washington State Senate approves new tax on capital gains by one vote". The Seattle Times. 2021-03-06. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  10. ^ a b "Washington House approves new tax on capital gains as fight brews over a referendum". The Seattle Times. 2021-04-21. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  11. ^ "Inslee signs off on capital gains tax for wealthy and tax rebate for lower-income workers in Washington". The Seattle Times. 2021-05-04. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  12. ^ "First lawsuit filed against capital-gains tax passed by Washington lawmakers". The Seattle Times. 2021-04-28. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  13. ^ "Former Washington attorney general sues, arguing new capital gains tax is an illegal income tax". The Seattle Times. 2021-05-20. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  14. ^ "WA's new capital-gains tax is struck down in blow to progressives". The Seattle Times. 2022-03-01. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  15. ^ "WA Supreme Court upholds capital gains tax". The Seattle Times. 2023-03-24. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  16. ^ "U.S. Supreme Court won't take up WA capital gains tax challenge". The Seattle Times. 2024-01-16. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  17. ^ "Meet the hedge fund manager upending WA politics with 6 voter initiatives". The Seattle Times. 2024-01-28. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  18. ^ "Effort to repeal WA capital gains tax, other initiatives move forward". The Seattle Times. 2023-12-29. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  19. ^ O’Sullivan, Joseph. "Six measures Washington conservatives are pushing on 2024 ballots | Cascade PBS". www.cascadepbs.org. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  20. ^ Lotmore, Mario (2023-12-29). "Let's Go Washington turns in over 2.6 million signatures for all six landmark initiatives". Lynnwood Times. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  21. ^ "WA's capital gains tax one step closer to November ballot". The Seattle Times. 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  22. ^ "Washington State Legislature". app.leg.wa.gov. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  23. ^ a b "Repeals of WA capital gains tax, climate policy take step toward November ballot". The Seattle Times. 2024-02-14. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  24. ^ "Lawmakers won't act on WA long-term care ballot initiative". The Seattle Times. 2024-02-16. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  25. ^ "Capital gains tax receipts in WA tumble". The Seattle Times. 2024-05-25. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  26. ^ a b "Net Capital Gains Tax payments | Washington Department of Revenue". dor.wa.gov. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  27. ^ "Effort to repeal Washington's carbon program puts budget in limbo with billions at stake". The Seattle Times. 2024-02-28. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  28. ^ "GOP initiative backers lose fight to keep budget impacts off WA ballot". The Seattle Times. 2024-06-08. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  29. ^ "Opponents already won a battle over these ballot measures. Now the real fight starts". The Seattle Times. 2024-08-26. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  30. ^ "The Initiatives - Let's Go Washington". 2024-09-02. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  31. ^ a b "Committees | Washington State Public Disclosure Commission (PDC)". www.pdc.wa.gov. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  32. ^ Square, Brett Davis / The Center (2024-05-30). "Association of Washington Business endorses two of three initiatives on the fall ballot". The Daily Chronicle. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  33. ^ Times, Claire Withycombe / The Seattle (2023-08-13). "State Rep. Jim Walsh elected as state Republican Party chair". The Daily Chronicle. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  34. ^ "WA ballot initiatives: Pro and con campaigns gear up to woo WA voters". The Seattle Times. 2024-04-15. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  35. ^ Wong, Nia (2024-05-23). "Campaign against I-2109, which repeals the capital gains tax, launched across Washington". FOX 13 Seattle. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  36. ^ Sowersby, Shauna. "Washington ballot initiatives lose ground with voters in new poll | Cascade PBS". www.cascadepbs.org. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  37. ^ "SurveyUSA News Poll #27198". www.surveyusa.com. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  38. ^ Square, Brett Davis | The Center (2024-06-19). "Poll indicates voter support for three initiatives on Washington's fall ballot". The Center Square. Retrieved 2024-09-17.
  39. ^ GBAO (May 14, 2024). "Poll Analysis: WA Voters Reject Heywood Initiatives". Politico.
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