REDMOND, WA – Let’s Go Washington (LGW) just announced the path forward for repealing Governor Ferguson’s unconstitutional income tax. IP26-645, an initiative to the people, would provide a straightforward repeal of the tax and give Washington voters the opportunity to vote yes to repeal the income tax.
“We’re announcing today that we’re starting the signature gathering campaign for IP26-645 to repeal Bob Ferguson’s income tax,” said Brian Heywood, LGW founder, as he opened the press conference. “We think it’s great that the legislature walked back some of their excessive taxes, so our initiative won’t repeal any of those goodies – Olympia will still be required to provide all those benefits for the people, but they won’t be doing it through the income tax. The voters in this state have rejected the income tax numerous times and we’ve had thousands of people reach out to help us repeal the income tax. People don’t trust the legislature, no one believes this will remain a tax on just millionaires, and Olympia’s budget has doubled in 10 years; they must live within their own means just like everyone else.”
IP26-645 is headed to print and already, thousands of Washingtonians have requested signature sheets to be mailed to them. LGW has 51 days to gather 400,000 signatures, a goal supporters are confident they can reach. In 2024, LGW gathered 540,000 signatures in 45 days to qualify I-2066 for the ballot.
Support for repealing the income tax has continued to grow, with business owners, families, and Washingtonians across the state speaking out about the risks the tax poses to taxpayers, small businesses, and the state’s economic future.
Jesse Proudman, Venice.ai President, joined the press conference to share his thoughts about the income tax.
“I’ve been a lifelong entrepreneur here in Washington State and I started my first company from my dorm room. I remember being a kid in Tacoma, coming to Seattle and just being in awe of the startup community there. Boeing, Starbucks, Amazon, they’ve all been started here in the state. I have watched the villainization of entrepreneurs in Washington State and specifically with this law, it’s really become depressing to think of our state without entrepreneurs. This income tax specifically targets those entrepreneurs. Compare that to large corporations who won’t be paying this tax, it just doesn’t make sense. My friends, family, and fellow entrepreneurs are leaving, they are packing up and moving out of the state – I’m supporting this effort to stop the unconstitutional income tax because I love and believe in our state and don’t want to leave. ”
Bob Ferguson and Jamie Pedersen have fought to keep Washington voters out of the process by passing the income tax in a manner that prevented a referendum and avoided an automatic vote of the people. LGW is doing what the Washington State legislature was too cowardly to do: giving the people the final say.
“I don’t make a million dollars every year, so I’m not going to lose a dime to this income tax, but I am opposed to it regardless,” said Viet Nguyen, a technology communications executive in Washington State and outspoken critic of the income tax. “I came here from Vietnam when I was 17 months old and I love Washington State. I have worked for Democrats and Republicans, I am now a centrist who reads bills and stays informed. This process has been a slow motion trainwreck and watching this income tax unfold, I knew I had to do something. I tried the inside route to contact the Governor and my legislators and when I received canned, automatic responses, I knew I had to go public. The heart of this issue is about trust. In 2024, the legislature didn’t dare send I-2111 to the voters because they knew that Washingtonians have made their stance on an income tax clear at least 10 times. They went back on their word, and we know voters deserve to make their opinion known.”
Heywood, Proudman, and Nguyen took questions from reporters and emphasized the importance of giving voters the opportunity to weigh in on the new law. Over the last several months, LGW has been flooded with emails, calls, and comments from people across the state asking for action against the income tax.
With initiatives hitting mailboxes by the end of the week, the people of Washington will get to make their voices loud and clear on repealing the income tax.
Go to www.letsgowashington.com to request copies of the initiative to help with signature gathering.