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Washington Republican leaders urge House to block Senate income tax, cite affordability concerns

Washington State Republican Caucus media availability · February 17, 2026
AI-Generated Content: All content on this page was generated by AI to highlight key points from the meeting. For complete details and context, we recommend watching the full video. so we can fix them.

Summary

Republican leaders at a media availability urged House Republicans and Gov. Inslee to oppose a Senate-passed income tax, calling it unconstitutional and harmful to affordability while warning that dozens of other tax proposals could raise costs for households and businesses.

Republican leaders in the Washington Legislature urged House members on Friday to reject an income tax that advanced in the Senate and warned of a slate of other proposed levies they say would worsen affordability.

"We're still focused on affordability, affordability, affordability," Senate Republican Leader John Braun said, opening the caucus availability. Braun said the Senate’s income tax would not solve cost pressures and accused Democratic proposals of relying on new taxes to address problems.

House Republican caucus chair Rep. Peter Abarno pointed to the state’s most recent revenue forecast as evidence the Legislature has capacity to pursue alternatives. "There are…

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