Kagi wanted Senate to consider capital-gains tax

By Evan Smith

Democratic State Rep. Ruth Kagi said last week that the Republican-controlled State Senate should have at least considered the Democrats' proposed capital-gains tax in the House budget.

The budget that the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives passed last week would increase revenue with a capital-gains tax, a tax that, Kagi said, would make the state’s tax structure more equitable than it is now.

“We will see if the senate will even consider it,” Kagi said March 30. “Given the inequity in our tax structure, I think it is incumbent on them to take it up. Low and middle-income families pay a far higher proportion of their incomes in taxes than our wealthiest families. It is long past time for us to rebalance the most regressive tax system in the nation.”

The new tax is not part of the budget that the Senate passed Monday. Leaders from the House and the Senate will negotiate the state budget over the next two weeks.

Kagi and other Democrats said in a press release last week that the House budget would put the state in full compliance with the State Supreme Court's 2012 McCleary decision that requires the state to provide full state support for basic public education.

Kagi, a member of the House Appropriations Committee, represents the 32nd Legislative District, including the City of Shoreline, part of northwest Seattle, Lynnwood, Woodway and nearby unincorporated areas of southwest Snohomish County, and parts of Edmonds and Mountlake Terrace.

Kagi, chairwoman of the House Committee on early learning and social services, is proud that the House budget would provide $227 million for early learning across the state.

"Half our kids enter into kindergarten behind,” Kagi said. “They don’t have the skills to be successful and most of those kids never catch up. Our obligation is to get those kids ready to succeed. It’s the best investment we can make.”

Evan Smith can be reached at schsmith@frontier.com.