Taxation-State and Local Commons^™

After Advisory Votes: Exploring Alternatives For Voter Engagement In Washington Tax Policy, Emma Morse

Washington Law Review

In 2023, the Washington State legislature repealed the state’s advisory vote system, which allowed taxpayers to express their opinions on enacted tax measures. This system was the first of its kind in the United States, a novel concept that no other state had implemented. Although the advisory votes were non-binding, they provided a platform for public input on tax policy decisions. The repeal of this system raises important questions about voter participation in tax policy, particularly in a state already known for its regressive tax structure. This presents an opportunity to consider whether Washington voters should have input on tax …

What's Important To Write About? A Century Of Washington Law Review Topics, Hugh Spitzer

Washington Law Review

This Article examines the topics of all lead articles in Washington Law Review during its past ninety-eight years of publication. The analysis illustrates the changing interests of legal academics, student editors, and the working lawyers and judges who have read and used the articles over a century. For its first fifty years, the journal focused on general topics of interest to practitioners, Washington law matters, business and tax law, and government regulation. Other topics, such as legal and judicial system reform, constitutional law, and comparative and international law, were present in modest numbers. In its second half century, Washington Law …

Individual Home-Work Assignments For State Taxes, Hayes R. Holderness

Washington Law Review

The surge in work-from-home arrangements brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic threatens serious disruptions to state tax systems. Billions of dollars are at stake at this pivotal moment as states grapple with where to assign income earned through these remote work arrangements for tax purposes: the worker’s home or the employer’s location? Some states—intent on modernizing their income tax laws—have assigned such income to the employer’s location, but have faced persistent challenges on both constitutional and policy grounds in response.

This Article provides a vigorous defense against such challenges. The Supreme Court has long interpreted the Constitution to be deferential …

Tribal Sovereignty And Economic Efficiency Versus The Courts, Robert J. Miller

Washington Law Review

American Indian reservations are the poorest parts of the United States, and a higher percentage of Indian families across the country live below the poverty line than any other ethnic or racial sector. Indian nations and Indian peoples also suffer from the highest unemployment rates in the country and have the highest substandard housing rates. The vast majority of the over three hundred Indian reservations and the Alaska Native villages do not have functioning economies. This lack of economic activity starves tribal governments of the tax revenues that governments need to function. In response, Indian nations create and operate business …

An Uncommon Carrier: The Fcc's Unintended Effects On Constitutional Use Taxation, Maricarmen Perez-Vargas

Washington Law Review

The constitutional use taxation framework, which regulates the circumstances under which states can require out-of-state sellers to collect and remit use taxes on products sold for use within the state, has not been examined by Congress or the Supreme Court since the 1990s, and then only to reaffirm a rule that had been in place since the 1960s. Since the 1960s, the Supreme Court has held that states can only collect use taxes from sellers that have a physical presence within the state and whose connections to the state are beyond connections via common carriers. The Court interpreted this rule …

The Economics And Politics Of Washington's Taxes: From Statehood To 2013, Don Burrows

Washington State Books

The book is divided into three parts. Part I contains five chapters. Chapters 1 and 4 provide a description, comparison and evaluation of Washington’s current tax structure. Chapter 2 provides a description, history and evaluation to the state’s three most important taxes: property, sales and B&O. Chapter 3 describes the roles played by the “tax policy makers” (i.e., citizens, governors, legislators, other public officials, businesses, labor groups, and numerous other interest group) in bringing about those changes. Chapter 5 includes a discussion and an analysis of contentious tax issues of concern to citizens, public officials and interest groups alike. Most …

Technology, Travel Companies & Taxation: Should Expedia Be Required To Collect And Remit State Occupancy Taxes On Profits From Facilitating Hotel Room Rentals?, Kerra J. Melvin

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

Online travel companies (“OTCs”) like Expedia and Hotels.com facilitate discounted hotel room rates for customers by contracting with hotels at a wholesale rate and then allowing customers to book rooms on their websites at a marked-up rate that is above the wholesale rate but below the market rate. Many states allow cities and counties to assess an occupancy or bed tax upon persons reserving hotel rooms, with the collections typically used to promote state and local tourism. Such statutes generally require the hotel operator to collect and remit the tax. OTCs have traditionally remitted the wholesale rate and the occupancy …

Safe Haven No More: How Online Affiliate Marketing Programs Can Minimize New State Sales Tax Liability, Jennifer Heidt White

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

Affiliate marketing has become a popular and profitable way for online merchants to access potential buyers, especially where those merchants lack a physical presence in the buyer’s home state. By increasing market penetration and brand recognition, affiliates have contributed to the growth of e-commerce and, consequently, the growth of untaxed electronic purchases. As a result, affiliates recently became the focus of states looking to capture lost sales tax revenue from online sales. In 2008, New York became the first state to target affiliate marketing programs with a tax amendment that requires out-of-state vendors that solicit more than $10,000 worth of …

Streamlined Sales And Use Tax Agreement: Is Your Business Ready For Compliance?, Anthony D. Milewski Jr.

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

As electronic commerce grows, states continue to lose tax revenue from vendors who fail to collect taxes on goods sold over the Internet. The problem has become so severe that 44 states and the District of Columbia are working on legislation, known as the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement, to simplify collection of taxes from Internet vendors. The Agreement simplifies rates and requires businesses to collect taxes when selling goods in remote locations. Businesses need to pay particular attention to this new Agreement for two reasons. First, it is likely to become law in nearly every state, and second, …

Taxes Vs. Fees: A Curious Confusion, Hugh D. Spitzer

Articles

Provides an analytical framework for categorizing varoius types of taxes and user charges and distinguishing between them, applying both economic and legal concepts.

A Washington State Income Tax - Again?, Hugh D. Spitzer

Articles

This Article shows how, because of changes in key rulings of the United States Supreme Court and in other state court rulings on the character of income taxes, Washington’s legislature could now implement a graduated net income tax on both individuals and businesses. The Article concludes that such a net income tax measure could lawfully be enacted by today’s legislature without amending the state’s constitution.

Defining And Valuing The Base Of The Property Tax, Joan M. Youngman

Washington Law Review

This article will consider the applicability of the "summation-of-interests" definition of property to the easement question generally, and will conclude that it is preferable to its alternatives in that context as well. The "summation-of-interests" definition in the easement context contradicts precedent established early in this century and accepted by a majority of jurisdictions. However, this precedent is based upon a number of logical errors: it equates property rights with property value, assumes that "property" must be defined as the rights retained by the owner of the fee, and sets the realizable sale price of the owner's interest as an upper …

Constitutional Law—The Scope Of The Commerce Clause In International Commerce—Japan Line, Ltd. V. County Of Los Angeles, 441 U.S. 434 (1979), Laura Treadgold Oles

Washington Law Review

By exempting containers in international commerce from local ad valorem property taxes, the Japan Line Court's interpretation of the commerce clause gives foreign merchants an advantage over their domestic competitors. The Court, lacking alternative grounds for exempting foreign containers from the state tax, concluded that the commerce clause justifies such disparate treatment. Rather than adopting an interpretation of the commerce clause which is inconsistent with its purpose, the Court should have upheld the tax and left the difficult question of international tax policy to be resolved comprehensively in a more appropriate forum.

Issues In Federal, State, And Tribal Taxation Of Reservation Wealth: A Survey And Economic Critique, Russel Lawrence Barsh

Washington Law Review

This article will consider the most important Indian tax decisions, comparing the intended results of the decisions in the context of congressional Indian law with their probable economic consequences. Part II briefly reviews the main factors essential for proper economic evaluation of a tax. Part III critically surveys recent law of federal taxation of reservation wealth. Part IV similarly surveys and criticizes decisions regarding state taxation of reservation wealth. Part V offers alternate resolutions for state-Indian taxation disputes. In Part VI, the article proposes a framework for applying tax economics productively to the problem of meeting tribal revenue needs.

State Taxation—Use Of Taxing Power To Achieve Environmental Goals: Vermont Taxes Gains Realized From The Sale Or Exchange Of Land Held Less Than Six Years—Vt. Stat. Ann. Tit. 32, §§ 10001-10 (1973), Mary Miles Teachout

Washington Law Review

In 1973 Vermont became the first state to enact a tax applying specifically to gains realized from the sale of land. The tax, confined to gains on short-term land holdings and designed to control short-term land speculation, promises to become a new weapon in the growing arsenal of innovative land use measures designed to channel land transfer and development in environmentally and socially responsible directions. This note examines the new Vermont tax, assessing its advantages relative to more traditional land use measures. It analyzes a recent Vermont Supreme Court decision upholding the tax and concludes, as did the court, that …

State Taxation—Privately Held Leaseholds In Publicly Owned Land—Ch. 187, [1973] Wash. Laws 1st Ex. Sess., Scott Dunham

Washington Law Review

In April 1973 the Washington State Legislature enacted the Leasehold Exemption Act, providing special tax treatment for certain leasehold interests in publicly owned, tax-exempt land. This measure was a response to the 1970 Washington Supreme Court decision which held that, in valuing these leasehold interests for ad valorem property tax purposes, the same standards of assessment were to be utilized as were used for valuing taxable property in general. The Legislature chose to apply the court's 1970 decision prospectively only. In so doing, it has placed serious strains on the assessment process. This note will discuss these administrative problems, as …

State Taxation Of Indians—Federal Preemption Of Taxation Against The Backdrop Of Indian Sovereignty—Mcclanahan V. Arizona State Tax Commission, 411 U.S. 164 (1973); Mescalero Apache Tribe V. Jones, 411 U.S. 145 (1973); Tonasket V. Washington, 411 U.S. 451 (1973), Clydia J. Cuykendall

Washington Law Review

Over the years, the policy of the federal government toward American Indians has vacillated between attempts to assimilate them into American society on the one hand and efforts to preserve their independence and cultural identity on the other. Like a pendulum, this policy, as expressed in congressional legislation, has swung from efforts in 1887 to break up the reservations by transferring tribal lands to individual Indians in fee, to the halting in 1934 of further such alienation, and then back again since the 1950s to renewed efforts to end tribal existence. The legal theories and canons of construction generated by …

Taxation—Property—Assessment Of Leasehold Interest In Publicly-Owned Lands For Purposes Of The Ad Valorem Property Tax—Value Not To Be Reduced By The Extent Of Indebtedness.—Pier 67, Inc. V. King County, 78 Wash. Dec. 2d 48, 469 P.2d 902 (1970), Anon

Washington Law Review

Plaintiff, a lessee of state-owned, tax-exempt harbor land, brought an action to recover personal property taxes paid under protest to defendant county Plaintiff contended that defendant county was obliged to follow the long-standing rule that the value of: a leasehold of tax-exempt real property for ad valorem property tax purposes equals its benefits less its burdens, including mortgage indebtedness and rent reserved. The trial.court found for the plaintiff and ordered the leasehold reassessed. The Washington Supreme Court affirmed. The standards used by the defendant county in reassessing the leasehold were then challenged by the plaintiff on substantially the same grounds. …

State Equalization Of Local Property Tax Assessments At Fifty Percent, Anon

Washington Law Review

The Snohomish County assessor revalued the real property in two school districts of the county. Once he had determined the true and fair value of each parcel and improvement, he computed the assessed value by utilization of a 25 percent assessment ratio. The property not included in the revaluation program was assessed at 20 percent of true and fair value. The Department of Revenue ordered the County Board of Equalization to reconvene for the purpose of equalizing assessments within the county. The order required the Board to apply uniformly a 20 percent assessment ratio or to propose a reasonable alternative, …

State Equalization Of Local Property Tax Assessments At Fifty Percent, Anon

Washington Law Review

The Snohomish County assessor revalued the real property in two school districts of the county. Once he had determined the true and fair value of each parcel and improvement, he computed the assessed value by utilization of a 25 percent assessment ratio. The property not included in the revaluation program was assessed at 20 percent of true and fair value. The Department of Revenue ordered the County Board of Equalization to reconvene for the purpose of equalizing assessments within the county. The order required the Board to apply uniformly a 20 percent assessment ratio or to propose a reasonable alternative, …

Constitutionality Of The Voting Provisions In The Seventeenth Amendment To The Washington Constitution, Anon

Washington Law Review

The seventeenth amendment to the state constitution provides Washington with one of the most restrictive property tax systems in the nation. Under its provisions the aggregate of tax levies upon real and personal property in any given taxing district may not exceed forty mills on the dollar of assessed valuation in any one year. Moreover, the forty mill limit may be exceeded only when three fifths of the electors voting authorize an excess levy. The amendment further provides that the election is not valid unless the number of persons voting constitutes not less than forty per cent of the total …

Constitutionality Of The Voting Provisions In The Seventeenth Amendment To The Washington Constitution, Anon

Washington Law Review

The seventeenth amendment to the state constitution provides Washington with one of the most restrictive property tax systems in the nation. Under its provisions the aggregate of tax levies upon real and personal property in any given taxing district may not exceed forty mills on the dollar of assessed valuation in any one year. Moreover, the forty mill limit may be exceeded only when three fifths of the electors voting authorize an excess levy. The amendment further provides that the election is not valid unless the number of persons voting constitutes not less than forty per cent of the total …

The Original Package—A Factor, Not A Test, Anon

Washington Law Review

By invoking the import-export clause of the United States Constitution, plaintiff sought to enjoin the imposition of state personal property taxes upon unsold portions of imported shipments of greenheart pilings and timber. The lumber was stacked in plaintiff's storage yard, according to existing orders or length. Plaintiff contended that each piece of greenheart, bearing identification stamped at the point of origin of the shipment, constituted an original package and was therefore immune from state taxation. The trial court entered judgment for defendant tax officials on the ground that, when imports are inherently incapable of being packaged, the unit of transportation …

Assessments In Washington, Philip A. Trautman

Washington Law Review

The history of the development of cities and towns in Washington, as elsewhere in the nation, is punctuated with problems relating to the construction and financing of local improvements. The accelerating increase of population in metropolitan areas of the state, can be expected to multiply these problems. It thus seems appropriate to examine special assessment principles as an aid to counsel representing private parties or municipalities

A Projection Of Washington's Financial Needs, George A. Shipman

Washington Law Review

This is a projection of the financial needs of the State of Washington over the next three biennial periods. It is intended to serve the practical need of observing current issues of state appropriations and financing in terms of apparent short-range trends. At the outset, it should be made clear that this effort is highly tentative. At the time of writing, basic data with respect to the trends that influence levels of governmental activity, both locally and statewide, fall far short of a desirable base for an accurate projection. Also, several possibilities for federal action which directly influence state and …

The Washington Tax System—How It Grew, Alfred Harsch

Washington Law Review

Since the establishment of Washington as a territory in 1854, the state's taxing system has expanded from a simple two-tax program, adequately serving the needs of its rough pioneer communities, into an involved complex of multiple taxes, limited and confined either within a rigid and strictly construed constitutional framework or by the outer limits of economic and political feasibility. Whatever may be one's belief with respect to the desirable extent of the governmental activities and services of the state and its many subdivisions, there can be no denying the proposition that the state's existing revenue system creaks, groans, and mightily …

Tax Problems From The Agricultural Point Of View, Chas. W. Hodge

Washington Law Review

The farmer in the State of Washington carries a heavier state and local tax burden in relation to both his net income and his gross return from products and services sold than any major industry not specially taxed. Although specially taxed businesses such as liquor, tobacco, and amusements often carry very high taxes in relation to their volume of business, in most cases all competitors for the market carry the same tax load in the market area in which they compete. While this makes the incidence of the tax hard to trace, it is fairly certain that such taxes generally …

Tax Problems From The Business Point Of View, Phillip Strawn

Washington Law Review

It would seem desirable to begin a discussion of state and local taxes from the business point of view by providing some indication of the meaning of the term "business." A dictionary definition which is pertinent is "the buying and selling of commodities and services; commerce; trade." Thus broadly defined, the term "business" embraces a great variety of activities and organizations. It includes such activities as manufacturing, wholesaling, retailing and the provision of services. It includes such organizational forms as corporations, partnerships, and sole proprietorships.

The Washington State Tax Structure As Viewed By The Consumer, Phillip W. Cartwright

Washington Law Review

In evaluating the Washington tax structure from the view point of the consumer it is necessary to determine what is meant by "the consumer." For purposes of this discussion, the term consumer describes a member of the general public performing in his role as a householder rather than in his role as an employee, employer, or self-employed individual. In his role as a consumer, the individual has a certain set of criteria with which he can render a judgment in respect to his satisfaction with a tax structure. Cast in another role, this same individual may well have another set …

State And Local Tax Problems From The Labor Point Of View, Joe Davis

Washington Law Review

This is a short presentation of what is believed to be the representative viewpoint of labor with respect to the inequities and inadequacies of the system as we now understand it. It is not intended to be an exhaustive examination of the taxing system now in use in the State of Washington.