ITEP Work in Action
ITEP’s Who Pays? Cited in Washington Bill Creating Financial Intangibles Tax
March 24, 2025
Senate Democratic leaders in Washington state have introduced a series of bills aimed at making the state’s tax code more balanced. In the bill text for a new financial intangibles tax, ITEP’s Who Pays? report is cited: “Washington’s tax system remains the second most regressive in the nation as it asks those with the least […]
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: The Truth About Washington’s Revenue Shortfall
March 14, 2025
During the 2025 legislative session, Washington state lawmakers face a budget shortfall that threatens funding for the public programs we all rely on. Read more.
Gov. Jay Inslee: Gov. Inslee Releases Future-Focused Budget Proposal
December 18, 2024
Today, Gov. Jay Inslee released a balanced budget proposal that protects progress on the programs and services that working families and businesses depend on — public safety, education, early learning, housing and behavioral health. Read more.
Washington State House Democrats: WA Improves Tax Equity Based On New Report
January 15, 2024
Washington’s tax system is becoming more fair for working families. Read more.
Washington State Supreme Court: Opinion Upholding Capital Gains Excise Tax
March 24, 2023
In 2021, the Washington Legislature enacted a capital gains tax, levied at a rate of seven percent on the sale or exchange of certain long-term capital assets. Read more. (See pages 4 and 11 for ITEP citations)
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: New Reforms Bring Balance and Equity to State’s Tax Code and Economy
July 9, 2021
People seeking a more equitable state tax code and stronger supports for parents scored major victories earlier this year in Washington state, after more than a decade of hard work and focused advocacy by community leaders. By enacting a new excise tax on extraordinary stock profits (capital gains) and an expansive new tax credit for […]
Washington Governor’s Office: Inslee signs economic justice legislation to help working families
May 4, 2021
Gov. Jay Inslee today signed an economic justice legislative package, including the Working Families Tax Credit and the capital gains excise tax, that starts the process of making Washington’s upside-down tax system fairer and more equitable. Read more
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Why Now Is the Time to Pass a Tax on Extraordinary Profits
March 8, 2021
Members of the Washington State Senate have an historic opportunity to create a more just state tax code while bolstering and sustaining our state’s fiscal and economic recovery long after federal recovery funds fade away. Senate Bill 5096 would create a new 7% excise tax on extraordinary profits from the sale of financial assets (capital […]
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Washington State’s Upside-down Tax Code is Even More Racist than You Think
February 12, 2021
Lawmakers in Olympia are finally listening to communities and rightly focusing on addressing racial disparities that have permeated our state economy and institutions for far too long. They must act immediately to reform many areas of public policy – from policing to housing, health care to employment – that serve to oppress Black, Indigenous, and […]
Real Change: Study: Washington Bottoms Out on US Tax Assessment
October 24, 2018
Guess what? Washington state’s taxation system continues to be one of the most regressive in the country. This news comes from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), which did a deep dive into the taxation policies of all 50 states.
Seattle Met: Report: Washington State Taxes Are Still the Most Inequitable in the Country
October 18, 2018
In Washington state, the less money you make, the larger your percentage of income goes toward taxes. A study from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy released on Wednesday concludes that Washington state still has the most regressive taxes in the U.S., meaning the poorest households pay a disproportionate amount of taxes compared to the richest households in the state.
Budget and Policy Center: Washington State Again Ranks Worst In The Nation For Our State Tax Code
October 17, 2018
Despite the many ways Washington state takes prides in its spirit of innovation, it still ranks dead last when it comes to its tax code, according to a new study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). Our state has the most upside-down tax code in the country, forcing people with the lowest incomes to pay 17.8 percent in state and local taxes as a percent of their income – while the state’s wealthiest residents pay just 3 percent.
Budget and Policy Center: Unacceptable. Washington Still Has the Nation’s Most Inequitable State Tax Code
October 17, 2018
Washington state continues to have the most upside-down tax code of any U.S. state, according to a new report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). It wrongly requires people with the lowest incomes to pay six times more in taxes as a percent of their income than the state’s wealthiest residents to fund investments that benefit all Washingtonians.
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Five Essential Truths About Our State Tax Code
April 12, 2018
Unfortunately, many myths permeate the public discourse about our state tax code. At the Washington State Budget & Policy Center, we are committed to making sure you know the truth about that tax code – and the real solutions that must be enacted in Olympia to make it work for everyone. Because it is a tax code that doesn’t live up to our values. It isn’t set up to invest in our communities in the short and long term. And it is set up to favor corporations, special interests, and the ultra-wealthy over everyday Washingtonians. As a result, the tax…
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Creating a Safeguard Rebate Is Key to Equitable Property Tax Reform
January 30, 2017
This is the fourth in a series of schmudget blog posts about property taxes in Washington state and the role they play in funding basic K-12 education. Any reform to the Washington state property tax code to help pay for schools must also take steps to make the tax code more equitable. In conjunction […]
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Closing the Tax Break on Capital Gains
January 20, 2017
A capital gain is the profit an individual receives from the sale of a financial asset. Currently, Washingtonians receive a tax break on the profits they make from the sale of high-end capital assets. This tax break contributes to our state having the most upside-down tax code in the nation, in which people with low […]
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Taxing Capital Gains
February 2, 2015
FAQ on Enacting a Capital Gains Tax In Washington State Read the full report
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Washington State’s Upside Down Tax System Takes A Heavy Toll On Communities Of Color
January 21, 2015
While most Washingtonians agree that everyone has a responsibility to help pay for schools, safe communities, health care, and other broadly shared investments that create jobs and grow the economy, the state continues to have the most upside down state and local tax system of any U.S. state, according to a new report, “Who Pays?”, […]
Washington Budget & Policy Center: Flawed Economic Model Hurts Washington State
June 11, 2014
An economic model frequently cited by some Washington state lawmakers to justify their opposition to tax increases distorts the impact of tax proposals on state economies, according to a new study from the non-partisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). The report makes it clear the Beacon Hill Institute’s State Tax Analysis Modeling Program […]
Washington State Budget & Policy Center: Corporate Tax Dodge Findings Show Need for Reforms in Washington State
February 27, 2014
Now that we know nine major corporations with operations in Washington state paid zero or less in federal corporate income taxes in recent years despite reaping huge profits, serious questions arise as to whether these corporations or others are dodging Washington state taxes too. Read the Full Report
Economic Opportunity Institute: Fairer Taxes for Washington: Taxing High Incomes to Reduce Regressive Taxes and Improve Public Services
January 15, 2013
Washington State’s seventy year-old tax structure is built on an ever-shrinking base, and taxes fall most heavily on those least able to afford them. This discussion brief outlines options for a limited tax on the highest income households, coupled with a reduction in sales or property tax. The result would be a fairer tax system […]
Washington State Budget and Policy Center: The Working Families Tax Rebate
January 14, 2013
Washington State is in a deep economic recession. Working families are struggling to make ends meet as more and more people lose their jobs, their homes, and their health insurance. Businesses are struggling to survive as consumer spending plummets. An unprecedented state budget deficit threatens to make the situation worse. Legislators have responded to the […]
Economic Opportunity Institute: An Income Tax for Washington: Questions and Answers
January 14, 2013
Washington State has been losing ground on education for 15 years, slipping towards the bottom of national rankings in class size and school funding. Our children, workers, and businesses deserve better. The recession highlights how difficult it is to raise additional revenues to maintain and improve public services, given Washington’s outmoded and regressive tax structure. […]
Washington State Budget and Policy Center: Balancing Adequacy and Equity in Washington State’s Property Tax
January 14, 2013
Public education, fire protection, emergency medical services, parks, criminal justice, hospitals: all highpriority public services that are funded by the property tax. Washington can ensure adequate funding for these programs the public demands and address the inequities in the system. Read the Original Full Report
Washington State Budget and Policy Center: Increasing the Sales Tax and Funding the Working Families Tax Rebate
January 14, 2013
In our new Policy Brief, the Budget & Policy Center recommends temporarily increasing the sales tax and fully funding the Working Families Tax Rebate. If enacted, this proposal would help maintain our shared investments in education, health care, the environment, and safer communities, while reducing costs for low-income working families. Read the Full Report (PDF)
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