Articles written by Jason Mercier
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Capital gains tax not 'excise' tax
Last week, the state Supreme Court heard oral arguments concerning the capital gains income tax. I attended the hearing in person. It is unclear when the court will issue its... — Updated 2/21/2023
Washington's constitution has broadest definition of property in the country
I recently had the opportunity to review all 50 state constitutions and confirmed an important fact for the current capital gains income tax litigation. Although most state... — Updated 11/3/2022
Fair taxes; amend the constitution
I recently had the opportunity to review all 50 state constitutions and confirmed an important fact for the current capital gains income tax litigation in Washington. Although most... — Updated 9/13/2022
Capital gains backers spying
Proponents of the unconstitutional capital gains income tax are working overtime to prevent voters from weighing in. First, there was the game last year with the emergency clause... — Updated 5/19/2022
Year 3 starts under gubernatorial edict
Sorry to break the news, Washingtonians, but Year 3 of living under emergency orders by the governor will continue without meaningful legislative oversight. The House officially... — Updated 4/6/2022
Emergency powers reform testimony
In an emergency, governors need broad powers to act fast. Legislative bodies inevitably take longer to assemble and act than a single executive, so they temporarily delegate their... — Updated 2/10/2022
Too many state elected officials
TVW recently held a Q&A event between students and the Gov. Jay Inslee discussing various topics, which included dam breaching, homelessness, climate policy, police reform and... — Updated 11/18/2021
Do we still need a Legislature?
With Gov. Jay Inslee telling us his ongoing mandates — developed behind closed doors and imposed without public involvement — are a “raging success,” do we still need the... — Updated 10/18/2021
Lawmakers wanted an income tax lawsuit – they'll get two
Public records show lawmakers plan to use the capital gains income tax to set up a lawsuit to try to impose a broad-based graduated income tax. They’re going to get not one, but... — Updated 5/10/2021
Robust remote testimony to look forward to in 2021
There’s no other way to say, 2020 has been just an awful year. It is difficult to believe anything good can come from this mess but I’m really excited to see that one silver... — Updated 11/22/2020
Is there a state budget cash deficit?
There are two legal options to respond to a state budget deficit: The governor orders across the board budget cuts, or a special session of the Legislature occurs liquidating the... — Updated 7/21/2020
