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Democrats saw a budget shortfall and did what they do best—raid your wallet, slap on a fee, and call it “equity.”
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Happy New Tax Year, Washington! Bob Ferguson’s $9.4 Billion Money Grab Begins
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Starting this month, Washington families, small businesses, and even the dead are footing the bill for the Democrats’ latest binge-spending spree. Governor Bob Ferguson and his legislative allies just enacted a tidal wave of new taxes and fee hikes—racking up an estimated $9.4 billion in fresh revenue over the next four years. That’s not budgeting — it’s looting.
Let’s start with the headliner: Washington now holds the record for the highest estate tax in the country, topping out at a staggering 35% on estates over $9 million. That’s nearly double the rate in most other states and even eclipses Hawaii, the previous crown-holder. So if you die in Washington with any success to your name, Bob Ferguson wants a bigger cut than your family gets.
Gas tax? Yep, that went up too—now 55.4 cents per gallon, while the rest of America averages about $3.16 at the pump, Washington drivers are shelling out $4.41. Must be nice funding failing ferries and broken transit dreams.
If you hunt or fish to feed your family, guess what? License fees jumped 38% thanks to an “inflation adjustment.” Translation: Democrats needed more cash, and you were an easy target.
Business owners, don’t worry—Ferguson’s got a tax hike for you too. B&O taxes increase across the board, hitting companies grossing over $5 million, financial institutions, manufacturers, and retailers alike. And starting in 2026, “advanced computing” companies (think tech giants and cloud services) will face an outrageous 7.5% surcharge—because innovation should be punished, apparently.
Need a marriage license? That’ll be an extra $100, courtesy of a new “co-responder” account. Want to sell liquor? Expect 50% higher license fees. Oh, and say hello to the coming Solid Waste Producer Responsibility program—bureaucratic speak for “more fees, more regulation.”
In short, the Democrats’ answer to every economic challenge is the same: take more from you, call it progress, and hope you don’t notice until the bill shows up. Well, it’s here. Read more at Center Square.
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Washington’s New Snitch Hotline: Report Your Neighbor for Hurting Your Feelings
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Washington Democrats have outdone themselves. Thanks to a law passed by the legislature and championed by Sen. Javier Valdez (D-Seattle), the state Attorney General’s office just rolled out a new “hate and bias incident” hotline — where even illegal immigrants can anonymously report you for saying something they didn’t like.
This Orwellian gem is now live in King, Clark, and Spokane counties. While it claims to focus on “hate crimes,” the hotline proudly encourages reports of “bias incidents” — which it defines as… wait for it… “expressing an opinion of hate or bias in a rude, unfriendly, or aggressive manner.” In other words, legally protected speech that hurts someone’s feelings.
The hotline doesn’t provide legal help, doesn’t collect information on the accuser, and explicitly includes First Amendment-protected activities as fair game. It’s basically the tattletale line for people offended by microaggressions, edgy jokes, or (gasp) Halloween costumes. And yes, the goal is to “inform” the legislature, law enforcement, and the governor — meaning your speech may now help shape future laws and police tactics.
The original version of the bill even offered a $2,000 bounty for reports, but lawmakers wisely axed that before things got too Soviet.
Of course, groups like the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network are thrilled. Their director claims “microaggressions” are “acts of violence” — a statement so absurd it deserves its own hotline report.
Even the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression is sounding the alarm, warning this hotline is a blatant attempt to chill speech and enforce ideological conformity. As they put it: “Speech isn’t violence. But the AG’s office can’t seem to tell the difference.”
Bottom line? Democrats just used public dollars to set up a feelings-police tipline that targets speech they don’t like — including from actual citizens. Welcome to Washington State, where the First Amendment is just a suggestion. Read more at Center Square.
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Democrat vs. Democrat: Shoreline Soap Opera Erupts Over Rent Caps and Hurt Feelings
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In the ultra-blue 32nd Legislative District, Democratic State Rep. Cindy Ryu has decided that her colleague, State Sen. Jesse Salomon, just isn’t left-wing enough to keep his seat — and now the gloves are off in a rare intra-party brawl.
Ryu, who once endorsed Salomon, is now launching a full-on challenge, claiming he’s “too moderate” for the ultra-progressive district that includes parts of northwest Seattle and suburban Snohomish County. Her big complaint? Salomon dared to push for a rent cap increase from 7% to 10% plus inflation instead of rubber-stamping the House’s lower number. Apparently, any deviation from the progressive hive mind is now grounds for cancellation.
Salomon, for his part, is trying to play adult in the room, calling himself a “pragmatic progressive” and touting bipartisan work on housing and public safety. Translation: he occasionally listens to voters who don’t want ideological purity to crash the housing market.
But don’t tell that to Ryu — or Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen, who’s busy scolding her for diverting resources from “competitive races,” as if Dem-on-Dem warfare in a 74% blue district wasn’t just a vanity project with legislative drama as the main event.
Pedersen even tried to shut down Ryu’s potential cash flow by warning donors not to let her transfer leftover funds from her House campaign. In other words: fall in line, or we’ll starve your campaign into oblivion.
So now the district that gave Salomon and Ryu each over 70% of the vote gets to enjoy a Democratic cage match over who can regulate housing prices harder. No Republican in sight. Just a purity test where even voting slightly differently earns you a primary challenge.
Democrats always say they want a “big tent.” Turns out, they mean it — as long as everyone inside marches in the exact same direction. Read more at the Washington State Standard.
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Bob Ferguson Hides Behind Talking Points, Ducks Real Debate
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As KTTH’s Jason Rantz recently reported, Washington Congressman Michael Baumgartner offered Bob Ferguson the fairest, most transparent challenge in politics: a good old-fashioned debate. The topic? The wildly popular Big Beautiful Bill that delivers real tax cuts to working Americans, ends taxes on tips, and brings long-overdue accountability to Medicaid. Ferguson’s response? Crickets.
Instead of defending his opposition like an adult, Ferguson retreated to Twitter and copy-pasted the national Democratic script: calling the bill a “grotesque betrayal.” Sound familiar? It should. That exact phrase magically appeared in statements from Pramila Jayapal, Patty Murray, Gavin Newsom, and the rest of the blue-state panic parade.
But here’s what Ferguson won’t say out loud: the bill protects Medicaid for the truly needy by ending handouts to illegal immigrants and able-bodied freeloaders who choose not to work. That’s not betrayal. That’s common sense.
What is a betrayal? How about Ferguson signing the largest tax hike in Washington state history while slashing support for programs like Kent’s PICC that help drug-dependent babies — a crisis worsened by the Democrats’ decriminalize-everything agenda.
Baumgartner offered Ferguson every advantage: pick the time, pick the place, even pick the moderators. But Ferguson, ever the partisan keyboard warrior, ghosted like a teen caught lying to mom. Why? Because he has no real argument. Just tired slogans, fearmongering, and a desperate need to distract voters from the wreckage of Democratic governance.
As Rantz explains, in the end, Ferguson didn’t show up because he can’t show up. He’s all script, no spine. Washingtonians deserve leaders who’ll fight for tax relief and fiscal sanity—not ones who run from a debate they know they’ll lose. Read more at KTTH.
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Spokane Voters Face a Taxapalooza Ballot This August
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Spokane County voters better sharpen their pencils and their calculators—four tax-related measures are hitting the August 6 ballot, each one dressed up as “essential,” “modest,” or “not technically a tax,” but all aiming straight for your wallet.
Aquifer Protection Area
The first measure is a 20-year renewal and expansion of the Aquifer Protection Area fee—a quaint little scheme that charges homeowners about $30 a year to “protect the water supply.” The spin? It’s “not a tax,” just a mandatory water-related fee. Bonus: this time, Spokane, Spokane Valley, and Liberty Lake all get looped in whether they like it or not.
City of Spokane Valley
Next up: Spokane Valley wants its first-ever general sales tax hike—just a measly 0.01% to fund ten new police officers. Officials claim the budget’s too tight to hire more unless voters cough up extra cash. Maybe if they hadn’t skipped 15 years of property tax increases, they wouldn’t be in this mess. But hey, it’s only a dime per $100 spent, right? Until the next “modest ask.”
Fire District 8
Remember that levy voters passed in April? Fire District 8 messed up the paperwork, so now they’re back, hat in hand, asking you to re-approve it. The “lid lift” would run you about $200 a year on a $400,000 home—because nothing says fiscal responsibility like needing a redo on your last tax hike.
Fire District 13
And finally, Fire District 13 wants to renew its emergency medical services levy, also at $200 a year for the average homeowner. Same rate as before, just extended indefinitely to “maintain current operations.” Translation: keep feeding the beast so they don’t have to tighten a single belt.
Each of these measures only needs a simple majority to pass, but taken together, it’s another reminder that no matter how small or routine they make it sound, it’s always the taxpayer who’s expected to do more with less. Read more at Center Square.
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