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Republican leaders say proposed income tax would hurt affordability, small businesses and risk out-migration
Summary
Senate and House Republican leaders criticized the Democratic income-tax proposal as unfair to married couples and small businesses, warned it could expand beyond millionaires, and said the state can prioritize existing revenue to fund needs such as public defense without a new income tax.
Olympia — Senate Republican leader John Braun and House Republican leader Drew Stokesberry used a week-4 leadership media availability to sharply criticize a Democratic income-tax proposal, saying it would worsen affordability and unfairly target small and medium-sized businesses.
Braun, speaking as the caucus’ lead, said the proposal ‘‘starts with a certain group’’ but ‘‘prioritizes past due entities,’’ and argued it would primarily benefit large companies while imposing penalties on smaller firms. He told reporters the bill ‘‘is a nonstarter for…
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