Senators put own money on line in sales tax bill

• Published March 06, 2010

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Despite the delay, the Senate is poised to take a shot at passing SB 6143 when members return to the floor around noon on Sunday.

The House adjourned today and is not working Sunday � because many members are attending a funeral in Renton for Steve Maxwell, husband of Democratic Rep. Marcie Maxwell. He died Feb. 28 of cancer.

Rep. Ross Hunter, the Medina Democrat who wrote a $758 million tax plan for the House, said he thinks the full House will vote on it Monday. HB 3176 includes about $758 million in new revenue and shifts another $100 million in revenues to general-fund accounts.

The new revenue is raised mainly through closing tax exemptions and increasing the business-occupations tax on lawyers, accountants and certain agents by 0.5 percent. HB 3176 also adds a sales tax on candy, gum, custom software, janitorial services and bottled water.

Hunter plans to announce a replacement tax Monday for one piece of his package that proved unworkable. That was to raise $58 million from repealing a business-occupations tax on certain companies' investment earnings.

The replacement won't be a sales tax, Hunter promised. I'm curious to learn if it isn't a larger version of the toxics tax, which Gregoire favors. It was scaled back recently in both chambers to cover storm water projects for cities and counties but not help close the state budget shortfall.

Odds are growing that lawmakers cannot finish their work on budgets before Thursday�s scheduled adjournment of their 60-day regular session.

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