Washington state needs tax reform

I read with interest another commentary about an income tax being proposed in Olympia and why that shouldn't happen. I imagine it means nothing to the writer that the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy in Washington, D.C., finds our state tax system the most regressive in the nation. We have the lowest paid teachers in the Northwest; we rank 47th in the nation in terms of class size.

We cannot properly fund our education system. This state depends greatly on a anti-business tax, an exorbitant sales tax, property taxes and dependence on the construction and forestry industries. We all saw how great that worked out in the last recession.

People are not going to move anywhere because of a 1.5 percent income tax or any other reasonable levy. The language in the state Constitution is subject to interpretation and can be overcome concerning an income tax by a ruling by our state Supreme Court. A constitutional amendment would not be necessary. I received this opinion in a private conversation with a sitting Supreme Court Justice.

This state badly needs tax reform, not unfunded initiatives to solve our fiscal problems. Please give this some thought with a open mind and demand tax reform from your elected representative.

This story was originally published June 8, 2016 at 2:07 PM with the headline "Washington state needs tax reform."