The Seattle Times: Washington State Relies on a Rotten Tax System

Poor people across the country pay a higher percentage of their income in state and local taxes than do wealthier people, but Washington is the worst offender in that regard. A report by the nonpartisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that in our state the 20 percent of households with the lowest income paid 16.8 percent of that income in state and local taxes in 2015. Across the country, low-income households pay 10.9 percent of their income in state and state and local taxes, but the percentage of income paid in taxes falls as income rises.

The top 1 percent in Washington paid 2.4 percent of their income, which is less than half of the national average, 5.4 percent. There have been efforts to introduce an income tax, but in recent times they’ve never gotten far. Read more