By now, Republican campaign "operatives" across the state have undoubtedly already clipped and scanned in this headline from a story that moved on the AP wire last night: "Democrats Propose Income Tax Bill."

As the story notes -- repeatedly -- Democrats so far seem to be floating the idea more than backing it. Now, however, the idea seems to be gaining some steam.

Here's the (first?) bill, which would impose a 1 percent state income tax but allow you to deduct your first $500,000 a year in earnings. In other words, the only people who would pay would be those earning $500,000 a year (our couples earning $1 million.)

Look at Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown's much-talked-about recent blog posts. Bold headlines -- "Yes, this post is about taxes" -- and laying out the case that Washington's tax system most hurts those with the least.

But in those posts, Brown stopped short of actually proposing a state income tax, asking only "Should we do something similar" to New York's proposed high-incomes tax and asking "would an income tax be found unconstitutional today?"

The Seattle Times reports this morning that Brown is, in fact, working on an income tax plan. The bill above would raise only about $50 million a year. Brown's proposal would presumably be larger.

And the state's most prominent Democrat -- Gov. Chris Gregoire -- is opposed. Asked about this at a press conference earlier this week, Gregoire said that a state income tax wouldn't be the answer to Washington's budget woes. "Look at Oregon," she said. (Oregon relies on an income tax and no sales tax, the opposite of Washington's tax structure.)

Gregoire followed that with more cold water today:

“...As I have stated before, I do not support a state income tax. The new proposal will undoubtedly raise constitutional and legal challenges and probably wouldn’t bring in new revenue in time to address the economic crisis we face.
 
“I too wrote a budget, and I am keenly aware of the painful choices we must make. I see clearly the faces of Washingtonians hurt by budget cuts.  I am looking for wise choices to protect our vulnerable, especially our children, and to make sure we fund K-12 and higher education at appropriate levels so that we come out of this recession stronger...I look forward to continue working with legislative leaders from both parties to craft a sustainable budget for the next two years.”

NOTE: I keep rewriting this post as things change...RR

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