Did you know? Letters to the editor are still one of the most read parts of newspapers. If you mention a lawmaker by name, they will be sure to see it.
Why now: Now is the time to ask legislators to keep moving Washington from worst to best when it comes to tax fairness. When we ask the wealthy to pay what they truly owe, we can meet more of the needs in our communities like more housing, ample child care, and health care.
TIPS FOR GETTING YOUR LETTER PUBLISHED
- Keep your letter to 100-200 words.
- Say who you are and why you’re writing
- Example: Moms like me know it’s tough to find child care. But it’s going to get easier soon, thanks to the new capital gains tax. The ultra wealthy will have to pay a bit more when they cash out investments, but all of us will benefit, especially kids.
- Name your lawmakers.
- Choose one of our three key messages below for your LTE!
KEY MESSAGES
THE CAPITAL GAINS TAX IS GOOD FOR ALL OF US.
- BRINGS IN CRUCIAL FUNDING: The capital gains tax on mega-millionaires brought in more than $900 million to support students and working parents across the state in 2023 alone.
- SUPPORTS STUDENTS & WORKING PARENTS: The capital gains tax increases funding for the Education Legacy Trust Account, which supports child care, pre-schools, special education, and community and technical colleges, among other things.
- CREATES JOBS: It creates thousands of jobs in the private and public sectors, which means more consumer spending at local businesses.
WE WANT TO FIX OUR UNFAIR TAX CODE.
- Poll after poll shows Washington voters support making millionaires and billionaires in our state pay what they owe in taxes to fund our schools, roads, and critical services.
- The capital gains tax on the super-rich is broadly popular; 58% of voters polled recently said they support it.
- If the super-wealthy and corporations pay what they owe to support basic services and education, we can grow the wages of everyday Washingtonians and decrease our tax burden.
SUBMIT YOUR LETTER:
OUR UNFAIR TAX CODE DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTS BIPOC COMMUNITIES.
- Our current tax code leaves poorer and BIPOC folks to carry more responsibility to fund public services, like schools, roads, health care, and more.
- Because of generations of discriminatory practices, like red-lining, too many Black and brown people have been forced into lower-income, higher-tax tiers.
- Those same policies have prevented Black and brown communities from building and passing on generational wealth.
- The capital gains tax starts to address the racial injustice built into our state tax code. It ensures that wealthy, mostly white, people start to pay more of what they truly owe.
