Franklin County commissioners say they won’t vote for income tax

Franklin County joins a growing list of local governments that committed to not imposing an income tax.

A measure passed 2-1 Tuesday morning states that an income tax would conflict with “the high value the county places on promoting economic development.”

“Imposing a local income tax may generate additional revenue in the short term, it would most likely result in less long-term revenue due to the dampening effect it would have on our businesses,” the resolution reads.

The pattern of resolutions has its roots in a 2019 Court of Appeals decision about a city of Seattle income tax.

As part of the decision, the three-member appellate court panel threw out a 1984 law that banned cities, counties and city-counties from putting income taxes in place.

The Washington Policy Center, a conservative think tank, said the decision opens the door to impose a 1% flat income tax.

So far, 10 cities, including Kennewick and Richland, have approved measures promising not to institute an income tax.

The resolutions don’t prevent the councils or the county governments from approving the measures at some later point.

County Administrator Keith Johnson said attempts to find a way around the prohibition on a state income tax have created concerns about a tax going into place.

While the three commissioners opposed an income tax, Commissioner Brad Peck voted against the resolution because it didn’t go through a legal review. It makes it seem that it applies to all of Franklin County, but it only applies to people living in the unincorporated areas.

“The resolution, candidly, not to offend anybody, it comes across as a bit of grandstanding to say, ‘We’re not going to do a tax,’” he said. “That’s right, we can’t do one unless this board votes for it.”

Commissioners Clint Didier and Rocky Mullen supported the resolution.

“I don’t support an income tax, so I support a resolution,” Mullen said

Appellate Court case

The lawsuit at the center of these measures focused on a 2017 Seattle law that would have taxed any single person on any money they earned above $250,000 or any married couple on money above a $500,000.

A trial court ruled against the city, and the city tried taking the case to state Supreme Court, according to court records. The Supreme Court sent the case to the Court of Appeals.

The appellate court tossed out the measure saying that it violated the constitutional limits on how taxes can be applied. State law allows first class cities to tax income, but it needs to apply to everyone the same way.

There are 10 first class cities in Washington, including Richland and Yakima.

The appellate court judges found a state law that put a blanket prohibition on any city or county putting an income tax in place unconstitutional because the bill that enacted the law had more than one subject.

Three of the five sections of the bill dealt with forming city-county governments, another section dealt with government financing regarding a city-county, then another section prohibited cities, counties and city-counties from applying an income tax.

“The only seeming connection between all subsections of the bill was that they generally relate to, as the bill title states, local government,” the judges wrote.

This story was originally published November 11, 2021 at 12:59 PM.