May 11th, 2026
In this issue:
- Do Higher Taxes Drive the Rich Away? Experts Say Nope.
- First Attack on Millionaires Tax Fails
- WA Supreme Court Bats Down Referendum Attempt Targeting Millionaires Tax
- What does ‘millionaires tax’ mean for regular WA families? Here’s what it does
- Our Tax System Should Make You Furious
You have probably heard some scare tactics in the last few weeks. A few people are claiming the Millionaires Tax will cause billionaires and mega-millionaires to move from Washington to Florida, the only state with a more regressive tax code than ours.
As one economist told the New York Times about the wealth flight boogeyman: “It is largely indeed a myth, and it’s more than that — it’s frankly almost propaganda.”
You can help calm the rhetoric by sharing these key points:
- NY raised taxes on the super-rich and…. now has more millionaires. NY has one of the highest tax rates for the rich in the U.S. but research by the Fiscal Policy Institute found that wealthy residents of New York were less likely to move out of state than those in other income groups, and that they did not leave in large numbers after a major tax increase in 2021. In fact, the number of millionaire tax filers in New York City has grown over the last decade, from about 25,000 in 2014 to 34,300 in 2023.
- New Jersey and Massachusetts also raised taxes on millionaires and …. crickets. Other states have raised income taxes on millionaires, including New Jersey in 2020 and Massachusetts in 2022, and did not see significant departures. In Massachusetts, lawmakers approved a 4 percent tax on incomes over $1 million, and revenue has exceeded expectations.
- Here in Washington, there are more millionaires than ever, even after the capital gains tax passed. A study by the Institute of Policy Studies found that the “millionaire class” grew by almost 50% in Washington state following the implementation of our capital gains tax. So far, that tax has raised over $1 billion for child care, early learning, and education.
But just as Brian Heywood and his friends tried and failed by a 30 point margin to repeal the capital gains tax and reverse these investments, they’re trying and failing so far to take down the Millionaires Tax. On Monday, the Washington State Supreme Court shot down their first attack on the tax.
Remember, these attempts aren’t just a gambit by a few mega-millionaires to give themselves tax cuts, they might also slash vital funding we just won for healthcare, education, and childcare, AND reverse the sales tax exemptions, Working Families Tax Credit, and small business tax cuts we fought so hard for.
Thank you for being part of this movement. Every one of us will be needed to defend and protect the Millionaires Tax from attack.
Ben
FIRST ATTACK ON MILLIONAIRES TAX FAILS
“Today’s Washington State Supreme Court ruling is another loss in California hedge-fund manager Brian Heywood’s record of failed efforts to give himself a tax cut. He lost by nearly 30 points with his attempt to repeal the capital gains tax on mega-millionaires and billionaires. Now he is trying to repeal the popular Millionaires Tax that not only funds urgent needs in healthcare and education, it puts much needed money into the pockets of working families and small businesses struggling to afford the basics.”
More – Press Release, Invest in Washington Now
WA SUPREME COURT BATS DOWN REFERENDUM ATTEMPT TARGETING MILLIONAIRES TAX
In the ruling, justices said the income tax’s so-called “necessity clause,” which shields it from a referendum, is valid.
The law “undisputedly generates revenue for the state’s existing institutions and hence is similarly subject to the ‘support of state government’ exception to the referendum power,” reads the decision signed by Chief Justice Debra Stephens.
More – Jerry Cornfield and Jake Goldstein-Street, Washington State Standard
DO HIGHER TAXES DRIVE THE RICH AWAY? EXPERTS SAY NO
Gabriel Zucman, an economist at the University of California, Berkeley, who appeared with Mr. Mamdani on Tax Day, said research clearly showed that the rich would not leave en masse.
“It is largely indeed a myth, and it’s more than that — it’s frankly almost propaganda,” he said. “There’s not a zero response. But it’s very small.”
More – Emma G. Fitzsimmons and Asmaa Elkeurti, The New York Times
Watch our video!
WHAT DOES ‘MILLIONAIRES TAX’ MEAN FOR REGULAR WA FAMILIES? HERE’S WHAT IT DOES
Annie Kucklick, policy and research associate with the Economic Opportunity Institute (EOI), a Seattle-based think tank that fights for progressive revenue, said benefits from the income tax depend on the person. But she did break down three ways that she thinks the bill will be a boon for Washingtonians.
In the first bucket: families who will get help from the expansion of the Working Families Tax Credit, Kucklick said. The second bucket would be those who will save money thanks to the sales tax exemption for diapers, hygiene products and over-the-counter meds. The final bucket? Small business owners.
Kucklick said the tax will mean relief for working households with small children and for those not currently eligible for the WFTC.
More – Simone Carter, The Olympian
OUR TAX SYSTEM SHOULD MAKE YOU FURIOUS
You may remember that in 2021, ProPublica published an investigation built on a bunch of leaked tax documents revealing what the richest Americans really pay — or don’t. Warren Buffett had a true tax rate of 0.1 percent; Jeff Bezos had 0.98 percent; Michael Bloomberg had 1.3 percent.
We know what they paid. So what is it they’re doing? How does it work? And what can we actually do about it?
More – Ezra Klein, The New York Times
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