A millionaire tax — do we need it?
Yes, for two reasons:
1. Millionaires should pay their fair share of taxes.
2. Washington has one of the most unfair tax systems in the country.
Washington relies heavily on sales and excise taxes, which means working families pay more, while wealthy families pay less as a share of their income. Washingtonians are struggling to pay for food, shelter, child care, gas and other essentials.
Lower income people spend everything they make and thus get taxed on everything. Even small increases in taxes or services reduce purchasing power. People with money have no such problem. They can spend their extra money on investments, land or other ways to earn more money. Rich people get the benefit of our tax system, but the middle or lower classes do not.
The wealthiest are shouting that a tax on millionaires is wrong. They should not have to pay their fair share. They should be able to keep their money to increase their wealth. Contrast this to working people. One of the loudest is Sen.John Braun. You’ll see a man with money shouting the loudest.
The real problem is pretending our current system is fair or sustainable. Several years ago, I attended a presentation by an auditor. He predicted that unless every Washingtonian is being taxed fairly, the state will be in financial trouble, because more people are moving into the state and Washingtonians are needing more services, putting a burden on the state budget. This prediction came true. We have more kids in schools, more traffic, more road repair, greater general and mental health needs, etc.
Couple this with decreased revenues due to drops in consumer spending and rising costs, plus inflation for existing services or expanded programs such as education, early childhood learning, health care and long-term care, which need to be financed.
Anti-tax groups shout this tax is a “bait-and-switch” — a hidden way to raise taxes on the middle class.
President Trump’s tax breaks primarily go to the wealthy and corporations. At the same time, Trump cancelled millions of dollars in funding for our state so he could provide tax breaks for the wealthy.
Did you hear any “bait-and-switch” comments from anti-taxers? No. Not one word.
Washingtonians are losing services: Health insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, SNAP and grant monies — not one word was spoken to help Washingtonians.
The Republicans support Trump's tax cuts, which should have gone to middle and lower classes. They support taking monies away from our state, which makes it tougher for Washingtonians.
This is the real “bait-and-switch.” Another argument: Rich people will leave our state. Washington has some of the richest people in the country. Is it because the rich do not want to pay their fair share of taxes?
We have been conned for years. This mantra, because they have repeated it so often, sounds reasonable, but it is not.
This is the con job we are up against.
Judy Bell
Centralia
