Heywood's IP26-645 (gutting billions in progressive revenue for education and essential services) is g
The third of a slate of several right wing initiatives for 2026 spearheaded by right wing mega-millionaire Brian Heywood and promoted by the Washington State Republican Party has passed its random sample check of submitted signatures, which means it is destined for the November ballot. It will be the very first thing voters see.
IP26-645 would repeal Washington State’s new million-dollar earners tax, created by Senate Bill 6346, while leaving in place the legislative authorization for planned investments that the tax is slated to fund, creating a gigantic revenue hole in upcoming bienniums at a time when the state is already facing a severe revenue shortfall. The wealthy would get another tax break at the expense of Washington’s youth and families.
A legal analysis by Pacifica Law Group (which NPI is a client of) found that passage of IP26-645 could put even more state revenue at risk, including the capital gains tax on the wealthy that Heywood tried to repeal two years ago. From their memo:
The legality of the Capital Gains Tax could be questioned if 645 passes. The Initiative broadly bans taxes “measured by” an individual’s income, including “any gain … derived from an individual’s capital.” Washington’s capital gains tax is calculated using gains from the sale of capital assets as reported on a taxpayer’s federal income tax return. In upholding the Capital Gains Tax, the Washington Supreme Court described it as a tax measured by gains from the sale or exchange of capital assets: “the capital gains tax is measured by gains (income) stemming from capital transactions.” As a result, there is uncertainty whether the Capital Gains Tax falls within the Initiative’s prohibition on taxes measured by “income” as defined.
https://www.nwprogressive.org/weblog/2026/07/brian-heywoods-ip26-645-gutting-billions-in-progressive-revenue-for-education-and-essential-services-is-getting-certified.html