Articles written by Jason Mercier
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Capital gains tax not 'excise' tax
Last week, the state Supreme Court heard oral arguments concerning the capital gains income tax. I attended the hearing in person. It is unclear when the court will issue its... — Updated 2/6/2023
Restore balance of power in Olympia
Gov. Jay Inslee announced last week that he will finally end governing under an emergency order — after more than 900 days —on Monday, Oct. 31. When the Legislature next... — Updated 10/11/2022
Fair taxes; amend the constitution
I recently had the opportunity to review all 50 state constitutions and confirmed an important fact for the current capital gains income tax litigation in Washington. Although most... — Updated 9/8/2022
Capital gains income tax battle to remain in courts
The next steps on whether Washington will remain income tax free will be in the courts, as the I-1929 ballot campaign to repeal the capital gains income tax has suspended its activi... — Updated 6/23/2022
Capital gains supporters set up surveillance
Proponents of the unconstitutional capital gains income tax are working overtime to prevent voters from weighing in. First, there was the game last year with the emergency clause... — Updated 5/10/2022
Year 3 starts under gubernatorial edict
Sorry to break the news, Washingtonians, but Year 3 of living under emergency orders by the governor will continue without meaningful legislative oversight. The House officially... — Updated 3/29/2022
lawmakers kill emergency powers reform
Sorry to break the news, Washingtonians, but year three of living under emergency orders by the governor will continue just as the last two years have – without meaningful... — Updated 3/17/2022
Emergency powers reform testimony
In an emergency, governors need broad powers to act fast. Legislative bodies inevitably take longer to assemble and act than a single executive, so they temporarily delegate their... — Updated 2/1/2022
State Supreme Court rules Governor issued illegal vetoes
In a 7-2 ruling this morning, the State Supreme Court said the partial vetoes the Governor made in the 2019 transportation budget were unconstitutional. When issuing those vetoes... — Updated 11/17/2021
Too many state elected officials
TVW recently held a Q&A event between students and the Gov. Jay Inslee discussing various topics, which included dam breaching, homelessness, climate policy, police reform and... — Updated 11/9/2021
Governor issues questionable line-item vetoes, again
We knew it was coming. The moment lawmakers tried to get clever and thought they could gain support for a Low Carbon Fuel Standard (House Bill 1091) and Cap and Trade (Senate Bill 5... — Updated 5/27/2021
Lawmakers wanted an income tax lawsuit – they'll get two
Public records show lawmakers plan to use the capital gains income tax to set up a lawsuit to try to impose a broad-based graduated income tax. They’re going to get not one, but... — Updated 5/4/2021
SB 5096 would impose a 9% income tax
There is no question SB 5096 would impose an income tax in Washington state. The Federal Internal Revenue Service (IRS) unequivocally says a capital gains tax is an income tax. If... — Updated 1/21/2021
Ask anyone, Inslee's proposal is an income tax
Despite the budget being balanced, billions in reserve, and projected revenue growth of 7.2%, Gov. Jay Inslee is yet again proposing an income tax on capital gains in his new... — Updated 12/30/2020
Could Zoom mean a legislature that listens more?
There’s no other way to say it, 2020 has been just an awful year. It is difficult to believe anything good can come from this mess but I’m really excited to see that one silver... — Updated 12/3/2020
No reason why a government shutdown should occur, even in a deficit
DURING the last two state budget cycles, Washington lawmakers have come dangerously close to forcing a government shutdown due to failures in the budget process. The current... — Updated 10/27/2020
Budget outlook takes another hit with Boeing's 787 announcement
It is official. Boeing will consolidate its 787 manufacturing in South Carolina. This news has many implications for the state including a direct impact on the state’s budget... — Updated 10/9/2020
State revenues growing overall but budget deficit still projected
First the good news. Unlike during the great recession, state revenue is still increasing overall during the COVID pandemic. According to the September revenue forecast:... — Updated 10/1/2020
More calls for a special session
Voices across the state continue to ask the Governor to call a special session to allow lawmakers to balance the budget and address COVID-19 related policies. A special session... — Updated 9/11/2020
Law requires across-board budget cuts
There are two legal options to respond to a state budget deficit: The governor orders across the board budget cuts, or a special session of the Legislature occurs liquidating the... — Updated 7/30/2020
Will Washington really punt budget action until January?
What once seemed inevitable is now growing unlikely – a special session to balance the state's budget. This is why it was so important to act before the new spending increases too... — Updated 7/14/2020
State may push income tax, again
TVW recently interviewed the top budget writers in the Senate about the state's outlook and the possibility of a special session. In one interview, Sen. John Braun (ranking member... — Updated 5/28/2020
Public records should remain accessible to all
When House Bill 1888 was proposed this year to help protect state employee unions from an ongoing battle with the Freedom Foundation, the media was strong in opposition against... — Updated 2/12/2020
