The media has FAILED when reporting on Jim Walsh's Initiative 2111 - it's a much bigger victory than they want you to believe.

The media has FAILED when reporting on Jim Walsh’s Initiative 2111 — it’s a much bigger victory than they want you to believe.

Tues, March 5, 2024

To: Our thousands of supporters throughout the state
(cc’d to the media, house & senate members, and Governor, and other candidates for office)

From: Tim Eyman
Fighting for Taxpayers for 27 years

Yesterday, the Legislature passed Jim Walsh’s Initiative 2111 into law (the Governor can’t veto an initiative to the legislature).

This is a HUGE VICTORY!

And it’s a much bigger victory than what’s being reported.

Let’s start with the basics — section 1 reads:

“Neither the state nor any county, city, or other local jurisdiction in the state of Washington may tax any individual person on any form of personal income. For the purposes of this chapter, “income” has the same meaning as “gross income” in 26 U.S.C. Sec. 61.”

But for months, the media has described the initiative this way:

“Initiative 2111 would prohibit the state and local governments from imposing an income tax.”

It does that but it also does much more.

Many citizens think our state Constitution contains a provision that prohibits an income tax.

That’s NOT TRUE.

What it says is this: PROPERTY must be taxed uniformly.

For over 100 years, that provision — called the Uniformity Clause — has been INTERPRETED to mean that since income is a type of property, the only type of income tax that is permitted is one that is “uniform” meaning it hits everyone equally.

So the only thing protecting us from an income tax has been the court’s INTERPRETATION.

Do you trust this state supreme court to continue doing that?

I sure don’t.

It is DRAMATICALLY MORE EFFECTIVE to have a state law that EXPLICITLY prohibits an income tax EVEN ONE THAT IS UNIFORM.

And that alone is a great accomplishment.

But Initiative 2111 goes further.

Read section 1 again — it prohibits “any tax” imposed on “any form of personal income”.

That is much broader than just stopping an income tax.

Initiative 2111 prohibits all governments from imposing a tax on your personal income even if they call it something else.

You’ve heard Democrats say, especially in recent years: “Oh, this isn’t an income tax, it’s an excise tax” and “You got it all wrong, this isn’t an income tax, this is a payroll tax, that’s different.”

The passage of Initiative 2111 stops the Democrats from playing such word games.

So, you might ask, if that’s true, why doesn’t Initiative 2111 eliminate the Democrats’ Capital Gains Excise Tax?

Because Jim Walsh understands how corrupt the state supreme court is.

To avoid even the possibility of a single subject rule violation, Jim prudently decided to do two separate initiatives: one that prohibits future taxes imposed on “any form of personal income” (Initiative 2111) and another that explicitly repeals the capital gains excise tax (Initiative 2109).

Jim’s decision to do two separate initiatives is definitely the best way to go.

So now that Initiative 2111 has been passed into law, how will it protect us?

Any future bill or local ordinance that proposes any tax on anyone’s personal income, regardless of what they call it, will be found unlawful under Initiative 2111’s prohibition.

The media has failed when reporting on Jim Walsh’s Initiative 2111 — it’s a much bigger victory than they want you to believe.

Is it any wonder Bully Bob Ferguson is so desperate to impose a lifetime ban on all my future political activity?

I urge you to help me fight back against the AG’s abuse of power by donating to the Tim Eyman Legal Defense Fund so that Richard Sanders can get this ridiculously unconstitutional ruling overturned.

Mail your check to:
Tim Eyman Legal Defense Fund
17404 Meridian Ave E #F PMB 176
Puyallup, WA, 98375

Or donate online:
By GiveSendGo (credit/debit card)
By Paypal (donate using PayPal or using a credit/debit card)

With your help, I will keep fighting for the people across our nation with initiatives, lawsuits, lobbying, and helping elect more freedom-loving elected officials.