Lu Hill: This is the moment. A Millionaires Tax will strengthen our communities

By Lu Hill

I love living in a city with resources that support our friends and neighbors – from the employment programs at our community colleges to the outreach services at our libraries to the resources provided by Spokane Neighborhood Action Partners.

I also love living in a state that is a trailblazer in passing policies to support working people. In the past decade, it’s been awesome to see advocates and everyday people successfully help enact: a higher minimum wage; the first-ever state long-term care insurance program; one of the nation’s most comprehensive paid leave programs; and the Working Families Tax Credit, which provides an annual cash boost of up to $1,330 to people with low incomes. These policies were designed to meet folks where they’re at, and they make a difference in the lives and well-being of workers, elders, people with disabilities, and so many others.

And now we have the opportunity to be among the first handful of states to pass a millionaires tax to help fund community needs. It is high time for something like this in Washington given that we famously have a lot of really rich people who get a special deal in our tax code. (Don’t get me started on corporate CEOs hoarding wealth at the expense of everyone else, including workers – many of whom aren’t paid a living wage or face terrible working conditions – who made them rich.)

Gov. Bob Ferguson officially called for a millionaires tax in December, and now a bill is moving forward in the Legislature. This tax would help address our state revenue shortfall so we can have better funding for schools, higher ed, human services and other vital programs. Fewer than 1% of people in Washington would pay this tax, and it would infuse approximately $3.7 billion annually into the budget.

This is a big deal. There is only a small group of other states that have implemented this kind of tax in recent years, but there’s growing national momentum to change that – as everyday people become more fed up with the daily challenges of an affordability crisis while rich people continue to buy superyachts and Cybertrucks. In our state in particular, a millionaires tax would help address our upside-down tax code where poor people pay higher tax rates than millionaires and billionaires.

I’m especially excited that the millionaires tax would provide more funding for the Working Families Tax Credit. For many people in Spokane, this allows them to pay for things like that long-overdue car repair, school supplies, or a special present for their kid’s birthday. But we know more people need it and it’s time to make it more accessible to a wider segment of the population.

Lawmakers absolutely must pass the millionaires tax. And while it’s a strong policy that meets this moment, it wouldn’t go into effect until 2029 at the soonest. Without new revenue in the meantime, our state will continue to face a budget shortfall every year because it over-relies on the dwindling sales tax. Unfortunately, some elected officials claim their only option to address this issue is more cuts to critical programs. The governor has proposed additional cuts to things like early learning, college aid, and grants, which provide a lifeline to families.

But that’s short-sighted. They have viable progressive revenue solutions on the table this session. They could pass the Well Washington Fund (an employer-paid payroll tax on high wages) and wealth tax. Together, these policies could bring in approximately $3 billion to $6 billion annually to our state budget and bolster efforts to address our upside-down tax code by ensuring super-rich people and corporations pay their share.

We need to join together to call on lawmakers to pass the millionaires tax, the wealth tax, and the Well Washington Fund. No matter where we live or what our political beliefs are, most of us agree the tax code shouldn’t be rigged for the wealthy few. And we’ve made important changes before. Nearly every county, both “red” and “blue,” voted overwhelmingly to uphold the capital gains tax (paid by the state’s wealthiest 0.2%) in 2024.

Now it’s time to take the next steps to ensure our tax structure works for more of us. Together, we can continue building on the progress advocates and everyday people have made toward creating a Washington where everyone has the opportunity to thrive. We need to urge legislators to pass a millionaires tax to fund our communities.

Lacrecia “Lu” Hill is a fourth-generation Spokanite who has long been involved in supporting the community in the nonprofit, philanthropic and small business sectors. She currently is the community engagement and strategy director at Waters Meet Foundation. These thoughts are her own.