While most of us were mesmerized by the results from the national election, voters in Olympia were doing their part to fend off a Martian income tax invasion by apparently defeating Measure 1 (currently failing 45% to 55%). Surprised to hear there was a War of the Worlds unfolding in Olympia? Let me explain.

At a Tacoma City Club forum on November 2, Governor Inslee was asked if he would veto an income tax. Here was his response (note 43:47 min mark of video):

“The income tax is a non-starter, is not on anybody’s table as far as I’m aware of, is not going to happen in the state of Washington. The only people talking about it are Republicans. I don’t issue veto threats for Martians landing at the Husky Field either, and that’s about as likely as an income tax in the state of Washington.”

It is possible when Governor Inslee made this comment he was unaware of the Martian income tax probes circling Olympia to see if a full scale invasion could be launched on Washington via our state Supreme Court. You see, the real purpose of the Olympia Measure 1 income tax was to create a test case to see if the state Supreme Court will overturn more than 80 years of case law banning graduated income taxes in Washington and allow a statewide income tax without changing the state constitution. 

To the unending gratitude of Washingtonians across the state, however, voters in Olympia appear to have fought off this sneak attack providing the state time to better prepare against the next Martian income tax attack. This new attack though could come as soon as the 2017 Legislation Session as the Martians re-tool their income tax probes in the form of a capital gains income tax (another effort that could be used as a test case before the state Supreme Court).

It is important we don’t leave our income tax defenses up to the vote of just five Supreme Court justices. Instead we need to fight this seemingly endless Martian income tax invasion effort with a full scale Star Wars missile defense system in the form of a constitutional amendment that makes our state’s income tax ban court proof.

Back here on Earth, with the apparent failure of Olympia Measure 1, income tax proposals have now lost the last 10 times they’ve been on the ballot in Washington (9 statewide and 1 local).

Additional Information
Citizens’ Guide to Olympia Measure 1, to create a local income tax to fund a college grant program
History of income tax votes in Washington
Timeline of Olympia Income Tax Ballot Measure
Former Supreme Court Justice Phil Talmadge's legal analysis of I-1098 (Income tax) 
State should make state income-tax ban crystal clear
Is a capital gains tax an excise or income tax?