Washington voters keep the millionaires tax, and its $100,000 cap on charitable deductions stays with it
Initiative 645, which would have repealed the 9.9% tax on income above $1 million, was losing about 58% to 42% when its backers conceded on Nov. 5. The law, which applies from 2028, lets a taxpayer deduct charitable contributions only up to $100,000.
Seattle. Washington's new income tax on its highest earners will stay on the books. Initiative 645, which asked voters to repeal it, had the support of only 42% of voters as of Nov. 5, KUOW reported, and nearly 58% voted no. That day Let's Go Washington, the campaign behind the measure, conceded.
The tax was created by Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 6346, which Gov. Bob Ferguson signed on March 30 as Chapter 238 of the Laws of 2026. Beginning Jan. 1, 2028, it taxes an individual's Washington taxable income at 9.9%, after a standard deduction of $1,000,000 per person. Spouses and state registered domestic partners share one $1,000,000 deduction.
What the law allows for charitable gifts
For nonprofits, the part that matters is Section 309. A taxpayer may subtract from Washington income the charitable contributions claimed on the federal return under Section 170 of the Internal Revenue Code, to a qualified organization, but only up to $100,000 per individual. Spouses and domestic partners share one $100,000 limit, whether they file jointly or separately. A qualified organization has the meaning the state already uses in its capital gains tax.
The cap limits the deduction, not how much anyone may give. A household with more than $1 million in income that gives more than $100,000 in a year would deduct the first $100,000 of those gifts on its Washington return and none of the rest, while its federal deduction follows federal rules.
The law reaches residents and some people who live elsewhere. It treats as a resident anyone domiciled in Washington during the year, unless the person kept no home in the state, kept one elsewhere and spent no more than 30 days in Washington, and anyone not domiciled there who kept a place to live in the state and was present more than 183 days.
What comes next
The vote settles the repeal question but not the tax's future. It still faces a challenge in court, which KUOW reports will likely be decided next year by the Washington Supreme Court. Nothing is owed before tax year 2028, with the first returns due in 2029.
About this story
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