State Supreme Court to hear arguments on I-1366 appeal

OLYMPIA – The state Supreme Court will hold oral arguments on an appeal of a ruling that struck down a tax-limiting initiative approved by voters last year.

The high court’s hearing Tuesday morning comes two months after a King County judge struck down Initiative 1366 as unconstitutional. He said it was a thinly disguised effort to propose a constitutional amendment – which can’t be done by initiative in Washington – and that it also violated the rule that initiatives be limited to a single subject.

Voters last fall narrowly approved I-1366, which would cut the sales tax by 1 percentage point, beginning April 15, unless lawmakers allow a public vote on a constitutional amendment that would require a two-thirds supermajority in the Legislature for future tax increases.