Most people in Washington don’t know it yet, but state lawmakers passed a new tax that will hit workers’ paychecks soon.  The payroll tax will bite into their incomes at a rate of 58 cents per $100 in 2022.   

Lawmakers are taking the money to fund a socialized, one-size-fits-all long-term care entitlement plan that most people don’t want or need — and that some people won’t get, even after paying into the plan for years. The program's lifetime benefit of a paltry $36,500 is insufficient for long-term care, according to industry data. (Read more about this unfair law, its burdensome new payroll tax and the small window workers have to opt out of it — but only if they have long-term care insurance policies in place by Nov. 1 — here and here.)

 Self-employed workers will not be subject to the tax yet, but they can opt in if they want to. And some business owners are confused, asking if “self-employed” includes them.  

A policy and rules manager for the state’s Employment Security Department confirmed to me Friday that business owners who are considered in a partnership, LLC, or who are sole proprietors or independent contractors, are not being forced to pay into the new state program. 

Employer resources  

If you have more questions for the state about the long-term care program, the payroll tax that will fund it or your individual circumstances, use the contact form available on a new state website: WACaresFund. Questions asked through the form are being read and managed by ESD and the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services. Also on the website, under a tab titled “employer information,” you can sign up for an employer newsletter.  

While the rules for this long-term care law are still in process, a link to the direct rulemaking page at ESD is here. Details of the law are confusing and complicated, but since this payroll tax is now law, workers and employers have no choice but to figure it out and comply.  

Struggling families across the state don't need another budgeting headache right now. Our elected rulers in the state capital clearly feel otherwise.