Washington Business Fall 2015 | Legislative Review | Page 35

issue area reports | taxation

Sen. Andy Hill, R-Redmond, chair of the Ways & Means Committee, left, and Sen. John Braun,
R-Centralia, vice chair of the Commerce & Labor Committee.

HB 2493

land use horticulture
tax incentive
Passed/AWB Supported
AWB supported House Bill 2493, sponsored by Rep. JT Wilcox, R-Yelm, clarifying
an interpretation of an existing tax incentive for farm and agricultural land. The bill
includes commercial horticulture in the
definition of exempt land. The bill passed
the House and Senate and was signed into
law by the governor.

HB 1645/SB 5573

tobacco taxes

Failed/AWB Opposed
AWB opposed House Bill 1645 and Senate
Bill 5573, which were requested by Gov.
Jay Inslee and sponsored by Rep. Gerry
Pollet, D-Seattle, and Sen. David Frockt,
D-Seattle. They sought to establish a 95
percent tax on e-cigarettes and vapor
products equal to the tax on tobacco products. This proposal saw multiple iterations
through the three sessions, including HB

Bill considered as part of
AWB’s voting record

2211, also sponsored by Rep. Pollet, and
SB 5477, sponsored by Sen. Bruce Dammeier, R-Puyallup. Both the House and
Senate bills focused on youth prevention
and access to e-cigarettes and vapor products, including requirements on labeling,
advertising and child-proofing. However,
the House version continued to push for
higher taxes on products that are used
by smokers to quit tobacco. While not
opposed to the provisions on youth access,
AWB opposed the tax increases because
data has shown that a substantial tax
increase on tobacco also increases inbound
smuggling rates. This proposed tax on
e-cigarettes and vapor products would
have the same result as the high taxes on
tobacco products. All of these bills ultimately failed to pass.

HB 1657/SB 5875

income valuation of
commercial property
Failed/AWB Opposed

House Bill 1657, sponsored by Rep. Dean
Takko, D -Longview, and Senate Bill

Favorable outcome for
Washington businesses

5875, sponsored by Sen. David Frockt, DSeattle, would have imposed additional
requirements on taxpayers appealing an
assessed value for commercial property.
The bill focused on the use of income
capitalization and would have required
rental income and expense statements
for the preceding two years. Failure to
submit the information would prevent a
taxpayer from the right to appeal. AWB
testified in opposition, expressing concerns that assessors should not be able to
use the income information received for
appeal purposes for the valuation of other
properties. The bills failed to pass though
the issue continues to be a priority for
the King County Assessor’s Office and is
expected back again in 2016.

HB 1658/SB 5876

filing fee for property
assessment appeals
Failed/AWB Opposed

S p o n s o r e d b y R e p . D e a n Ta k k o ,
D -Longview, and Sen. David Frockt,
D-Seattle, these measures would have
allowed counties to impose a filing fee
for property assessment appeal petitions.
AWB testified in opposition, asking lawmakers to preserve the right of taxpayers
— whether residential or commercial —
to have access to justice when seeking
a challenge to their property taxes. We
further recognized that broader reforms
to the tax appeals system were necessary beyond imposing fees, and that this
should be part of a larger discussion on
tax appeals reform found in SB 5449. This
measure was a priority of the King County
Assessor’s Office and failed to pass.

Missed Opportunities

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