In early returns, Washington voters were favoring professional initiative sponsor Tim Eyman’s latest tax-limiting initiative. Republicans control the state Senate and Democrats have a slim majority in the state House, so neither party can put an amendment on the ballot by itself, which requires a two-third majority of the Legislature.
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Voters are also decide on four non-binding advisory votes on tax increases approved by the Legislature earlier this year, including a gas tax increase and an excise tax on medical marijuana.
The measure was passing in most counties across the state but trailed in King County, the state’s most populous.
Initiative 1366 would reduce the state sales tax by a penny unless Washington lawmakers send voters a constitutional amendment requiring a two-thirds vote for tax hikes.
Any effort at a constitutional amendment would face a daunting road to passage in the politically divided Legislature.
If they don’t, that sales tax cut could add up to a loss of about $8 billion in revenue over the next 6 years, most of that in the state’s general fund.
The result came despite a recent state ethics investigation accusing Eyman of illegal profiteering on initiatives – and despite opponents warning I-1366 could punch a multibillion-dollar hole in the state budget.
Supporters of the issue in Oregon announced Monday that they are planning a measure similar to Washington state’s to appear on the November 2016 ballot.
“We’re going to close down the whole West Coast on this issue”, said an exuberant Jennifer Hillman, the Humane Society of the United States’ Director of Outreach and Engagement in Seattle.
That lawsuit is now pending on appeal before the state Supreme Court, and opponents of I-1366 are hoping that the court will rule soon on the initiative’s validity.
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But the state Supreme Court struck down the supermajority requirement as unconstitutional in 2013, saying that such a rule could only be enacted through a constitutional amendment.
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The biggest-ticket items are the two statewide ballot measures.
