SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. – In a unanimous decision on Tuesday, Dec. 14, the Spokane County Board of Commissioners have unanimously passed a ban on local income tax.
Spokane County now joins Franklin County, Yakima County, and 11 other Washington cities that have passed income tax bans.
In the 2021 Legislative session, legislators passed a law, which begins in 2022, imposing a tax on long-term capital gains. The resolution passed today by Commissioners is aimed at protecting any further encroachment on local businesses ability to grow and expand and the rights of Spokane County residents to protect their wages.
The resolution prohibits the imposition of any local income tax on businesses and resident of Spokane County. This action will prohibit the imposition of a local income tax in the event that a local income tax is determined legal and permissible by the Washington State Legislature or the Washington State Supreme Court.
Chair of the Spokane County Board of Commissioners, Josh Kerns, stated, “As Commissioners, we have a responsibility to protect the well-being of our community. Small businesses and families have been hit hard enough by the pandemic. The last thing they need now is the government to come in and take away even more of their hard-earned money. This resolution simply draws a line in the sand for something we won’t stand by and watch happen.”