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Higher fees replace tax
increases in state budget
By Rep. Dan Kristiansen
Last December when the
governor unveiled her
state operating budget proposal, she asked the Legislature to
refrain from tax increases. "Now is not the time to be raising taxes on
our residents and businesses," she said.
House Republicans were
glad to hear that statement, but skeptical that the majority party could
finish the legislative session without asking citizens for more money.
Unfortunately, we were right.
When the Legislature
adjourned April 26, press releases issued by the majority party touted
passage of a "no-new-taxes" budget. However, those press releases failed
to say that Washington's citizens will be paying $435 million more to
the government in new and higher fees.
Here's a sampling of fees
I opposed:
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House Bill 1413 authorizes an annual fee for domestic wastewater
facility permits.
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House Bill 1778 increases hunting and fishing license fees.
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House Bill 2331 substantially increases the fee for document
recording of judgments, liens, deeds, mortgages, property ownership
and real estate transactions.
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House Bill 2339 adds a $5 fee to vehicle license tabs for state
parks, with an "opt-out" box if you don't want to pay it.
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House Bill 2358 substantially increases liquor license fees for
establishments that serve alcoholic beverages.
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House Bill 2362 increases court fees.
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Senate Bill 5976 makes a temporary $1 per tire replacement fee
permanent.
The same governor who said
"now is not the time to be raising taxes" has approved nearly all these
bills.
Republicans used an
Initiative 960 provision to challenge whether several of these measures
are a tax or a fee. The initiative requires tax increases to have
two-thirds House and Senate approval. The requirement does not apply to
fees.
What is the difference
between a tax and a fee? Here's the Office of Financial
Management's definition:
"A tax is a required
contribution to the support of government exacted by legislative
authority, ordinarily without regard to receipt for particularized or
special benefits. A fee is a charge, fixed by law, for the benefit of a
service or to cover the cost of a regulatory program or the costs of
administering a program for which the fee payer benefits."
In a rare case, the House
speaker ruled in favor of our challenge of
House Bill 2029, which would have implemented a telephone tax. The
measure died after failing to get two-thirds approval. However, all the
other cases were ruled as fees, which allowed the majority party to
skirt past Republican opposition and approve them by a simple majority.
Regardless whether you
call it a tax or a fee, it still comes from the same place -- taxpayers.
And in this budget, taxpayers will be paying $435 million more at a time
when they can least afford it. So really, it's not a "no-new-taxes
budget" at all.
The governor also said in
December, "Our families are tightening their belts, and that’s what
government needs to do."
Now that you've read this,
who do you think will have to tighten their belt more?
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EDITOR'S NOTE:
State Rep. Dan Kristiansen, R-Snohomish,
represents the 39th Legislative District, and also serves as chairman of
the Washington House Republican Caucus. He can be contacted at (360)
786-7967 or from his Web site at:
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov/Kristiansen.
For more information, contact:
John
Sattgast, Senior Information Officer: (360) 786-7257
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