Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson backs income tax on millionaires

Jim Brunner, The Seattle Times on Dec 23, 2025

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SEATTLE — Gov. Bob Ferguson has thrown his support behind an income tax on millionaires, backing what would be a seismic shift in Washington’s tax code.

At a budget news conference Tuesday, Ferguson said he’ll back a proposal brewing among legislative Democrats that would impose a 9.9% tax on people who earn more than $1 million annually.

Washington is one of nine states that do not currently have a personal income tax.

With both houses of the Legislature controlled by big Democratic majorities, Ferguson’s support for a state income tax on the rich may bring what has been a holy grail for progressives closer to reality than ever.

“We are facing an affordability crisis. It is time to change our state’s outdated, upside down tax system to serve the needs of Washington today. To make our tax system more fair, millionaires should contribute more toward our shared prosperity,” Ferguson said.

Democrats and progressive activists have for decades chafed at the state’s reliance on sales taxes that impose a heavier burden on poorer residents, while leaving the wealthy comparatively untouched.

But voters have repeatedly rejected past efforts to create an income tax. Most recently, in 2010, the state soundly rejected an initiative that would have imposed an income tax on wealthy people while lowering other taxes.

Backers of the new tax say the state’s political climate has shifted and that polling shows more support for the change — especially as Washington’s Democratic-heavy electorate seethes at the policies of the Trump administration.

The new tax would not solve the state’s immediate budget shortfalls, Ferguson emphasized Tuesday, but if passed in the upcoming legislative session, it could kick in by 2029 and raise at least $3 billion annually.

Ferguson said he wants that threshold codified so that the $1 million threshold would rise with inflation and exempt people making less money — possibly through a constitutional amendment.

Ferguson said he wants some proceeds of such a tax to be dedicated to tax breaks for lower income people, such as through expanding the state’s working families tax credit or cutting sales taxes.

Asked whether voters should be able to weigh in on an income tax, Ferguson said that he’s confident opponents will ensure it gets sent to the ballot.

“I have zero doubt that they will have that opportunity,” Ferguson said.