Legisature Warned on Raising Taxes

Legislators wrestling with our state's budget shortfall have been warned that raising taxes will hurt business and cost jobs.

Carl Gipson, Small Business Director for the Washington Policy Center predicts thousands of jobs would be at stake.

"Burdening small businesses with higher taxes today will lead to fewer jobs and lower economic output tomorrow," stated Gipson.

The economic impact of a sales tax increase would also cost jobs.

Washington Research Council’s new study, “The Economic Impact of Hiking Taxes to Close the Budget Gap” predicts a $1 billion sales tax increase would eliminate 14,759 jobs, and a $2.6 billion sales tax increase would eliminate 38,024 jobs.

“Washingtonians are already struggling in the worst economy since the 1930s. Lawmakers should not try to make balancing the budget easier by making people’s lives harder,” said Paul Guppy, the WPC’s Vice President for Research.

“To put the state on firm fiscal footing, any budget adopted must not raise taxes during a recession," said Jason Mercier, Government Reform Director for WPC. "Taking more money from businesses and cutting people’s take-home pay through higher taxes is not the solution.”