Washington Business Summer 2015 | Page 46

business backgrounder | education & workforce “No one believes there are the votes in the Legislature for $3 billion in new money, particularly solely from property taxes, to address this issue,” Hunter said. “But, what if we add something else to the mix; we raise property tax a bit and add a new capital gains tax to balance it out? Now it’s not hitting homeowners as hard. There may be a mix that works better as we rearrange property taxes.” Using other forms of taxes, such as state sales, a new tax or other tax sources, to pay for schools is perfectly fine, Peterson explained. The caveat, he said, is that the funding source must be “stable and reliable” to meet the court’s mandate. Dammeier believes a resolution can be found without new taxes. “The proposal I put forward takes the local property tax down because we would bring the salary costs now at the local level back to the state,” Dammeier said. It's a balance, or “trueing up,” as he called it, of the differing school districts’ levy capacity around the state. “It will take us a while to get this piece done,” Hunter acknowledged. “Phase two of McCleary is levy reform and whatever we decide must be phased in all at once to have it in place by 2018.” The House Appropriations Committee will begin meeting in September to come up with a plan this fall to address levy reform in 2016. Whatever happens, the consensus is that any levy reform plan presented to the Legislature must be a bipartisan House and Senate effort and be vetted by the public at open committee hearings throughout the fall so a plan is sketched out prior to the Sen. Bruce Dammeier Levy Reform Bill start of the 2016 session. bit.ly/DammeierLevyReformBill “We can’t be perfect, but we can balance out a statewide solution with a thoughtful approach,” Hunter said. Rep. Ross Hunter Levy Swap Bill Meanwhile, with fines adding up, the court is watching and weighing the next bit.ly/HunterLevySwapBill actions of the Legislature this fall, if any, and what may be ahead for levy reform in the 2016 legislative session. GTT&C does not offer all types of legal services. Just one — civil litigation. “We have succeeded in forming a smaller, more agile law firm composed of experienced lawyers and staff, committed to achieving our clients’ litigation objectives.” Seasoned Trial Lawyers for Commercial Disputes GTT&C represents Northwest, national, and international businesses in business litigation, insurance recovery, and personal injury litigation. Our lawyers have extensive experience in the trial of civil litigation throughout the state and federal courts in Washington and other jurisdictions. All civil litigation. Nothing else. “We are trial lawyers to the core.” – GTT&C Partner, Jeff Thomas GTTC15019 Ad-Assoc WA Bus2.indd 2 46 association of washington business 6/3/15 6:01 PM