WA Supreme Court to Review Income Tax Repeal + New Energy Codes May Increase Housing Costs

Washington state's income tax repeal fight is heading back before the Washington Supreme Court as the battle over Initiative 645 and its controversial ballot language intensifies ahead of the November election.

A panel of Washington Supreme Court justices is set to consider government transparency advocate Arthur West's challenge to the Public Investment Impact Disclosure, or PIID, that will accompany Initiative 645. The initiative, backed by Let's Go Washington, seeks to repeal Washington's new income tax.

Critics, including Washington GOP Chairman Jim Walsh, argue the Attorney General-crafted disclosure is misleading because it warns that repealing the tax would reduce funding for K-12 education, higher education and healthcare even though revenue from the new tax has not yet begun flowing into state coffers.

But the income tax repeal fight has now taken another unusual turn. West is suing Walsh and the Washington State Republican Party for defamation over claims that West was unprepared and "tricked" during the original Thurston County Superior Court case. Two Thurston County judges have now recused themselves from the West v. Walsh lawsuit.

Also in this episode, Washington builders are raising concerns about proposed updates to the state's residential and commercial energy codes. The Washington State Building Code Council continues considering rules favoring electric heat pumps and further electrification as the Washington Supreme Court separately considers the legal fight surrounding Initiative 2066 and natural gas choice.

The Building Industry Association of Washington is questioning why the state is moving forward with additional energy-code changes before the Initiative 2066 litigation is resolved. Builders and housing advocates are also raising concerns about construction costs, housing affordability and the impact new Washington energy regulations could have on homeowners, renters and homebuilders.

Plus, a Washington ranching family is appealing its legal battle against the Washington State Department of Ecology. Wade and Theresa King, owners of King Ranch in Grant and Douglas counties, are fighting more than $260,000 in penalties and potentially millions of dollars in restoration costs stemming from the state's claim that maintenance of stock-water ponds disturbed protected wetlands.

The Kings dispute that the areas are wetlands and argue they should have the right to have a jury decide the case rather than proceeding through the Pollution Control Hearings Board.

Watch Washington in Focus for the latest Washington politics, Washington Supreme Court news, Initiative 645, Washington income tax repeal, Initiative 2066, natural gas regulations, Washington energy codes, housing affordability, property rights, Department of Ecology disputes and government accountability news from across Washington state.

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