Overview
- Lawmakers approved SB 6346 and Gov. Bob Ferguson has said he will sign it, with the surtax taking effect Jan. 1, 2028 and first payments due in 2029.
- The 9.9% rate applies only to income above $1 million and is expected to affect about 20,000 households, or less than 0.5% of residents.
- Because the $1 million threshold is the same for single and joint filers, dual‑earner couples can owe tax even if each spouse earns under $1 million, a design experts call the nation’s largest marriage penalty.
- State estimates project $3 billion to $4 billion a year, with revenue directed to free school meals and an expanded Working Families Tax Credit.
- Sportico estimates more than 50 Seahawks and about 30 Mariners and Kraken players would owe the tax based on current rosters, and opponents are preparing legal challenges that could test the law before 2028.