I found out something new today.
The voters’ pamphlet we receive this year for the general election will contain flat-out lies.
I was a bit shocked that the false message was allowed to stand, but apparently, the Washington secretary of state allows anything at all to be said in the voters’ pamphlet without question.
I didn’t know that.
“For” and “against” statements regarding initiatives that appear on the ballot have always been provided. They are usually expressions of opinion, although facts are sometimes selectively used to support one side or the other.
This one is different.
It will tell voters that any future change to Washington’s income-tax law would be decided on the ballot, and voters always have the final say.
That is a lie, and it’s counting on you to misunderstand how our legislative system works. Currently, this tax has a $1 million deduction, but the tax itself applies universally. It isn’t a “millionaires’ tax.”
The law does not limit the income tax to millionaires. It simply provides a $1 million deduction, and that number can be changed. Of course, using that name fools people into believing the tax will only apply to millionaires.
But the current deduction is set in statute, not the constitution, and a future Legislature can change it to whatever income level the Democrat majority wants. They can change $1,000,000 to $500,000 next year if they like. Or $200,000 if they have a few extra programs they want to fund.
To make matters worse, the tax law contains a marriage penalty. Two unmarried individuals each receive the deduction, while a married couple gets only one deduction between them.
All it takes to reduce the threshold is legislation changing the current deduction. Then it only takes a one-vote majority in each chamber to pass the bill. With the governor’s signature, the new deduction applies statewide. It becomes law. The issue does not go to a vote of the people.
That is a lie.
Another false claim is that we will be forced to cut the most important programs in the state. That isn’t true either. Budget decisions reflect the Democrat majority’s priorities. They didn’t look for programs that might be bloated and need cutting. They didn’t look at whether the thousands of NGOs and nonprofits that receive tax dollars are producing results.
Maybe that’s harder to do than just creating a new tax to take more of our money.
If you are a voter, do you agree with these tactics? Did you even know about this? Anyone who believes in honest debate should be horrified. This should not be rewarded this November at the ballot box. Vote yes on I-645.
Ruth Peterson
Curtis
