Overall Tax Competitiveness (Tax Foundation 2026):

• Rank: 45th (out of 50) — 6th worst overall
• Sales Taxes: 49th — 3rd highest combined state/local rate in the nation at 9.57%
• Corporate Taxes: 47th
• Individual Income Taxes: 31st — currently no broad income tax, but the 9.9% tax on retirement accounts, as well as income over $1 million (which is only a starting point) starts January 2028. *There is talk already of losing the income limit to include everybody on a scale while still keeping the 49th highest sales tax.
• Property Taxes: 25th

But the bigger story is what the state is losing:

• Howard Schultz, Starbucks founder, is leaving for Florida after 44 years, announced right as the income tax passed
• Jesse Proudman, Venice.ai founder, is leaving after starting three companies here, calling the state increasingly hostile to job creators
• Starbucks expanding in Tennessee could cost Seattle up to $750 million in tax revenue
• 17% of Washington employers are considering relocating, up from 9% last year

Meanwhile, the politicians' response:

• Sen. Jamie Pedersen, the tax's author, dismissed exodus concerns as businesses are literally leaving
• Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson laughed about millionaires leaving, saying "bye"

Bottom line: Washington's average tax burden looks middling as a percentage only because the state's incomes are high — the sales-tax reliance ranks 4th worst in the nation for how much of your paycheck it eats. Adding a 9.9% income tax won't fix that; it just pushes out the employers everyone else depends on. YES on I-645 repeals it before it starts.

Thoughts comment below.