[Kshama immigrated from India to the United States, ostensibly to improve her economic situation. She went on to further her education, submitting her PhD dissertation in 2009. It is certainly fair to ask how this venture was underwritten.]
Posted on 07/31/2017 11:35:38 AM PDT by servo1969
By unanimous vote, the Seattle City Council has now enacted an Income Tax ordinance imposing a tax on "high income residents," i.e, those whose annual incomes exceed $250,000 ($500,000 for joint filers).
The new legislation is largely the work of Councilwoman Kshama Sawant, an unabashed leftist and redistributionist who was elected on the Socialist Alternative party ticket, and who was a moving force behind Seattle's ill-advised $15 per hour minimum wage.
[Kshama immigrated from India to the United States, ostensibly to improve her economic situation. She went on to further her education, submitting her PhD dissertation in 2009. It is certainly fair to ask how this venture was underwritten.]
Kshama is only accepting $40,000 of her $117,000 annual salary, declaring that figure as "roughly the full-time take-home pay of a Seattleite."
After paying taxes, the remainder of my salary will go to a Solidarity Fund to help build social justice movements. Throughout the year I will be making donations from this Solidarity Fund to causes such as workers' strike funds, and environmental, civil rights, and women's rights campaigns.
Some flashing red lights here:
Firstly, just what is this "Solidarity Fund" and who administers it? Is it commingled with Kshama's regular bank accounts, and if so (and even if the excess funds are placed into a separate account over which she herself has signatory authority), are we to depend upon her self-control for assurances that she does in fact live on $40,000 per year? Where is the transparency in the Fund's administration?
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
Good go after em in state court
Usually when one says unconstitutional they are referring to the US constitution
Not all state constitutions do the same as the federal. But they are allowed their own local control
Good, pile on the taxes-in fact limit income to 100k per year. That would be wonderful; they will be like Venezuela in a few years. At least there will be money to be made by smuggling toilet paper and toothpaste.
Violates the 14th Amendment as well (income is considered property in WA)
“Back to India...”, where they have it all figured out!
This is how you destroy a city. People with money will leave.. businesses will not pay the wage if they can move a few blocks away - out of the city limits.
It’s a downward spiral.
Perfecting the California state wrecking agenda.
For a tax to not violate the 14th it have to be applied against all wage earners in the state at the same rate of taxation.
ARTICLE VII
REVENUE AND TAXATION
SECTION 1 TAXATION. The power of taxation shall never be suspended, surrendered or contracted away. All taxes shall be uniform upon the same class of property within the territorial limits of the authority levying the tax and shall be levied and collected for public purposes only. The word “property” as used herein shall mean and include everything, whether tangible or intangible, subject to ownership. All real estate shall constitute one class: Provided, That the legislature may tax mines and mineral resources and lands devoted to reforestation by either a yield tax or an ad valorem tax at such rate as it may fix, or by both. Such property as the legislature may by general laws provide shall be exempt from taxation. Property of the United States and of the state, counties, school districts and other municipal corporations, and credits secured by property actually taxed in this state, not exceeding in value the value of such property, shall be exempt from taxation. The legislature shall have power, by appropriate legislation, to exempt personal property to the amount of fifteen thousand ($15,000.00) dollars for each head of a family liable to assessment and taxation under the provisions of the laws of this state of which the individual is the actual bona fide owner. [AMENDMENT 98, 2006 House Joint Resolution No. 4223, p 2117. Approved November 7, 2006.]
I don’t know enough about Washington’s state constitution to know whether or not a locality can impose an income tax without the state’s approval.
I know that here in Pennsylvania Philadelphia’s status as a “first class city” allows it to impose pretty much any insane tax it wants with no oversight from Harrisburg.
Washington’s constitution prohibits an income tax by legislation. It requires a vote of the people. That rules out individual cities or counties passing an income tax. Just as Seattle tried to pass their own stricter gun laws and found out that only the state has the power to pass or change our gun laws. Years ago, WA governments at any level could have their own and it was a mess.
None of this stops our incredibly thick politicians from continuing to try. The current examples of Gov.Insley & AG Ferguson are proof of that. I won’t even waste time talking about that communist cow Sawant.
Yup, crazy women and stupid Leftist ideas running the show INTO THE GROUND in Seattle. Fugeddabouddit.
A 1984 WA state law: A county, city, or city-county shall not levy a tax on net income.
Given all the California asshole moving here, I believe the liberal Dems want to go after this law very soon - they are pouring a lot of $ into state senate races in the Seattle suburbs to gain a majority.
The thing that makes Washington somewhat special is that to pass a state sales tax requires a majority vote by referendum. I lived there for 46 years. It was tried quite a few times. It always failed.
The sales tax in Seattle is now over 10%. The problem with that is it even impacts the precious snowflakes, the poor and the illegals. They want a way to stick it to the producers of wealth. I don’t know if the state law affects municipalities and counties too. I assume it does. I just got back from almost two weeks in the Seattle area and a couple of op-ed writers were laughing at the council trying to impose an illegal tax.
“May be against state law but there is nothing unconstitutional about it”
The Internet is full of ignorant retards.
“RCW 36.65.030
Tax on net income prohibited.
A county, city, or city-county shall not levy a tax on net income.”
HAHAHAHA! I have to quit re-inventing the wheel.
It’s all in this search. This is going to be more fun from the looney left.
https://www.google.com/search?q=can+seattle+legally+impose+an+income+tax
Another reason why foreigners have no business being elected to office.
What about gross income?
:-)
I’m just funnin’ ya. :-D
Ah, another PhDino.
PhD in name only.
Obviously in some non-academic lib art. (Hard to find a real academic lib art nowadays.)
I wanted to move to Seattle for a long time (work in the hi-tech industry and lots of good jobs in my field there), but last few years they seem to have gone off the deep-end with their liberal politics so I don’t even think of it anymore.
But now that retirement is just a decade or so off, I need to find a nice quiet place in the country instead - preferably someplace conservative and with low property taxes and low income taxes...is there any place left?
Good one! That was funny.
The income tax is nothing but outright theft. Hell, the mafia takes less.
I moved away from Seattle (my home of 46 years) about six years ago. I just got back from a two week visit. My wife was afraid I was going to die of an anurism every time I got behind the wheel of a car.
I survived, but it will be a while before I try to experience that mess again. When I left, Mercer and westlake were bad. Now they are atrocious. And the bike lanes are insane. I say that as someone that bike commuted in that congestion hell-hole for almost 20 years.
That city is run by liberals who cut their teeth on 1960’s “brave new world” type of Sci-fi novels and are trying to speed up the city’s journey to those mindlessly stupid utopian dreams. Current generation be damned.
They should learn a lesson from the USSR trying to force culture’s hand. It will not end well, though there are a lot of cranes on the skyline as I type this.
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