REDMOND—Let’s Go Washington launched a signature-gathering campaign Tuesday, May 12, for initiative IP26-645 to repeal Washington’s newly enacted 9.9% tax on household income above $1 million and place the issue before voters on the November 2026 ballot.
The political committee, led by founder Brian Heywood, announced the drive at a press conference as the conservative advocacy group prepares to mail petition sheets to supporters across the state. The measure directly challenges the tax law that Governor Bob Ferguson signed on March 30, 2026.
“The voters in this state have rejected the income tax numerous times,” Heywood said in Tuesday’s presser. “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.”
The legislation, Senate Bill 6346, imposes the levy on annual household wage income exceeding $1 million for residents and nonresidents earning Washington-sourced income. It applies to pass-through entities such as LLCs and S corporations but exempts C corporations and provides a $1 million standard deduction. The tax takes effect for income earned beginning in 2028, with collections starting in 2029 and projected to raise roughly $3 billion a year for the state’s general fund from about 21,000 filers.
Lawmakers said that the revenue will be used to support expansions of the Working Families Tax Credit, free K-12 meals, child care investments, reductions in business-and-occupation taxes for small companies and sales tax exemptions on diapers, personal hygiene products and over-the-counter drugs. The bill also includes a necessity clause declaring the tax essential for state government operations.
According to page 109 of SB-6346, “NEW SECTION. Sec. 1208. The tax imposed in this act is necessary for the support of the state government and its existing public institutions.”
Let’s Go Washington first tried to force a referendum on the law shortly after Ferguson signed it. Secretary of State Steve Hobbs rejected that filing because of the necessity clause, and the Washington Supreme Court upheld the decision on May 4, ruling that the provision satisfied constitutional standards for shielding revenue measures from direct voter referral.
The law “undisputedly generates revenue for the state’s existing institutions and hence is similarly subject to the ‘support of state government’ exception to the referendum power,” reads the decision signed by Chief Justice Debra Stephens.
According to Article II, Section 1(b) of the Washington Constitution: “…the referendum… may be ordered on any act, bill, law, or any part thereof passed by the legislature, except such laws as may be necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or safety, support of the state government and its existing public institutions….”
The Washington State Supreme Court ruling left the initiative route as the only immediate path to the ballot. IP26-645 would repeal the income tax levy outright and add broader language prohibiting any state or local tax on individual income. If passed, it leaves the other tax relief provisions from the original Senate bill intact but removes a set-aside of 5% for attorneys to be deposited into the General Fund.
“We’re not repealing any of those [provisions] things,” Heywood said. “Olympia will still be required to provide all those benefits for the people, but they won’t be doing it through the income tax.”
Jesse Proudman, president of Venice.ai and a lifelong Washington entrepreneur, described the tax as a direct hit on the people who start and grow businesses. Many of his friends and family members have talked about leaving the state, he said, adding that he supports the repeal effort because he still believes in Washington and wants it to remain a place where innovators can thrive.
Viet Nguyen, a technology communications executive who does not meet the income threshold, said the issue comes down to trust. He does not stand to lose a dime personally, yet he opposes the tax because the legislature knew voters had made their position clear at least 10 times before rejecting an income tax.
Let’s Go Washington needs at least 308,911 valid signatures from registered voters by July 2 — a 51-day sprint — to qualify for the November 2026 election. The organization is aiming for approximately 400,000 signatures to account for any that might be invalidated, a strategy rooted in its past performance, Heywood said. Two years ago, Let’s Go Washington collected more than 540,000 signatures in 45 days for I-2066—prohibiting state and local governments from restricting access to natural gas.
Washington voters have turned down proposals for a broad-based income tax at the polls roughly 10 times since the 1930s. Opponents, including Republican lawmakers during the bill’s debate, argued that the measure conflicts with constitutional provisions treating income as a form of property that must be taxed uniformly opening the door to a statewide income tax on all income brackets.
If the initiative qualifies and voters approve it in November, the repeal would be locked in for at least two years. A separate legislative initiative path could still allow lawmakers to act or send a modified version back to voters in 2027.
Signature sheets are now available for pre-order on the Let’s Go Washington website.
Author: Mario Lotmore
