A recent letter to the editor references a misleading report that claims I supported bills that spend over $10 billion in state revenues. This claim is loaded with logical fallacies.

The report, issued by a far-right-wing think tank, is flawed. When adding up the numbers, it only counts a bill’s potential increase in spending. Many bills the report references as “spending increases” contain provisions that also decrease spending elsewhere, often times resulting in a net loss of revenue to the state.

The Freedom Foundation conveniently leaves this side of the ledger out of their report. It is also important to note that many of the bills referenced are only proposed and many contain duplicative ideas, counting the same "new revenue" more than once.

In addition, one of the biggest “spending increases” it alleges is legislation, HB 2762, which adds accountability and transparency to the hundreds of tax loopholes currently in our tax code. I strongly support this bill, which adds an expiration date to every tax loophole, so the Legislature is forced to periodically review whether the loophole is serving a valuable purpose.

Currently, wasteful tax loopholes sit on the books untouched because a recent Tim Eyman initiative requires a two-thirds vote to repeal them. Is adding accountability and transparency to tax loopholes the equivalent of a “$4 billion spending increase”? I don’t think so, but it depends on how you look at it.

Another alleged spending increase is HB 2791, which closes a tax loophole for out-of-state shoppers primarily from Oregon who currently pay no sales tax, and uses the proceeds to fund all-day kindergarten, which has a proven impact on improving student learning. I think that is the right trade-off to make.

The Legislature has cut state spending over $10.5 billion since 2008. This has had real impacts on our communities, including larger class sizes in schools; higher tuition at UW, community colleges, and elsewhere; lower pay for teachers and other state employees; less oversight of industry to prevent pollution; and a weaker safety net for the mentally ill, developmentally disabled, and out-of-work families. Adjusted for inflation, the state has reduced spending 20 percent since the recession hit. State and local taxes collected in Washington as a percent of personal income are at their lowest levels since 1960.

With my 34th district colleagues, Sen. Sharon Nelson and Rep. Eileen Cody, I am proud to stand for a fairer, more sustainable tax structure, and for investments in public education and infrastructure that will position Washington for economic recovery. We know that we have so much more work to do to secure our state’s economic future and look forward to continuing that work in years to come.

Joe Fitzgibbon
State Representative
34th Legislative District