Neither balanced nor fair

I just want to express how grateful I am (not) to Governor Inslee and the Washington state powers that be that have added yet another new tax that I must pay but will never benefit from, “At a cost that is balanced and fair.”

As if it wasn’t hard enough already to get by on less than $30,000 a year in a job with no benefits as a single parent raising a grandchild, I now get to help others enjoy up to 12 weeks of paid time off for various medical reasons including adoption or childbirth – which, by the way, is a choice and rarely an emergency, and thus should be planned and paid for by the parents involved.

The taxpayers that can least afford this may also be unlikely to qualify for the benefit. 0.4 percent may seem like pennies to most, but to many of us it means much more.

Mary Fries

Spokane Valley