The country's not even making pennies any more!
Pucker up
- Thread starter Rob Allen
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Capt Insano Emeritis
Legend
Broke my nose… aww just being self- indulgent as is usual.
Capt Insano Emeritis
Legend
Lowest at 16 yrs old in SW Wa 24.9 in 1969. Amazing how cool I thought driving was then even in dads 1969 Ford Futura station wagon ! Aka “the Sled”
I used to say that to my dog Cody and many other friends!!
WA state pension obligation is 9 billion a year, so in a state with no personal income tax the only way they can begin to cover such massive payouts is by taxing and raising fees for everything else.
OR pays out 6 billion a year, with no sales tax it has to lean on income taxes and fees for everything else.
CA pays out 31B a year, so basically tax the hell out of everything without legs on it and charge fees for even that.
4 states are in technical default on their pensions, with 27 states currently unable to meet their annual all in financial obligations. Supreme Court watchers believe one of the biggest cases to ever reach the SC will be when a state declares bankruptcy and seeks relief from it's pension obligation through reduced payouts.
A note on allowing state bankruptcy | Macroeconomic Dynamics | Cambridge Core
A note on allowing state bankruptcy - Volume 29
www.cambridge.org
Under current U.S. federal law, states cannot file for bankruptcy. While municipalities (cities, counties) can use Chapter 9 to restructure debt, states are sovereign entities under the Constitution and lack a legal framework to declare bankruptcy. They can, however, default on debt or technically face insolvency.
It will be an interesting turn of events, should it unfold.
Capt Insano Emeritis
Legend
The disassociation of equality in COL and COL(cost of licencing) is not a clean windshield and efficiency. Gubmint over the wee folks.
Well most all states are taking in record revenues, due to both larger populations and inflated currency...
Relative to income and population growth, Washington’s budget has actually declined by 60% overall. From 1995 to 2025, the state’s yearly operating budget shrank from 1.55% to 0.63% of total personal income for every one million residents (adjusted for inflation).
Consider the tax structure of the state also...the lowest incomes pay the highest percentages as tax, so relatively modest increases are a higher percentage of their income, leading to higher levels of resentment compared to high wage earners.
Total income has increased overall, it has not done so equitably
The share for those at the top has grown far more than for everyone else. From 1995 to 2025, total income for the top 1% nearly quadrupled. What about the rest of us?
opportunityinstitute.org
Washington: Who Pays? 7th Edition
Washington Download PDF All figures and charts show 2024 tax law in Washington, presented at 2023 income levels. Senior taxpayers…
itep.org
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Capt Insano Emeritis
Legend
I agree And Rob is never entirely wrong in my opinion and some here go way back seeing his posts as I do. Monikers change or true names are used but the people do notWell most all states are taking in record revenues, due to both larger populations and inflated currency...
Relative to income and population growth, Washington’s budget has actually declined by 60% overall. From 1995 to 2025, the state’s yearly operating budget shrank from 1.55% to 0.63% of total personal income for every one million residents (adjusted for inflation).
Consider the tax structure of the state also...the lowest incomes pay the highest percentages as tax, so relatively modest increases are a higher percentage of their income, leading to higher levels of resentment compared to high wage earners.
Total income has increased overall, it has not done so equitably
The share for those at the top has grown far more than for everyone else. From 1995 to 2025, total income for the top 1% nearly quadrupled. What about the rest of us?
Washington: Who Pays? 7th Edition
Washington Download PDF All figures and charts show 2024 tax law in Washington, presented at 2023 income levels. Senior taxpayers…
Pink Nighty
Legend
I sympathize with you rob! This state is taking in enormous amounts of revenue, and for what? My wife just had her 28th first grader added to her class. School support is being slashed left and right. Our roads are congested and in constant disrepair. Can't fish anywhere I want to, but the states spending millions supporting Canadian trollers and filling lakes with zombie fish.
I'm happy to pay taxes that get used moderately efficiently to cover goals for the common good. Education, health care, infrastructure, social safety nets, let's go. But lately it's seemed to be costing a whole hell of a lot to watch the things I love in this state disappear.
I'm happy to pay taxes that get used moderately efficiently to cover goals for the common good. Education, health care, infrastructure, social safety nets, let's go. But lately it's seemed to be costing a whole hell of a lot to watch the things I love in this state disappear.
Capt Insano Emeritis
Legend
More philosophical here:
I just find being a grumpy old man so satisfying. Don’t y’all?
I just find being a grumpy old man so satisfying. Don’t y’all?
charles sullivan
Life of the Party
I understand all 3 items above. I don't see how doing #3 necessarily even helps with 1 and 2. In fact, I would say that 3 is a poor answer to the issues that 1 and 2 represent.
I think the issue is that I don't really know who the "they" that you speak of is. If "they" are the representatives in Olympia, then I can see your point, however, cutting the pay of Rep's won't make a dent in the budget. If "they" is state employees then I think that would be a poor tactic and probably cost a lot more in the long run. It's not like the average state employee is making big bucks. Balancing the budget on the backs of your employees salaries is generally quite short sighted in my opinion.
I think that you should do all that you can to be an active participant in our state and lobby for the state government that you want. If that is a government that provides fewer things or with different priorities, you should get involved as best as you can.
While the sticker shock may be real, for me, I put these things in perspective; $200 for tags does not outrage me quite as much as the price of groceries. The price of a tin of coffee is currently $18.00; a tin lasts us just about 2 weeks. That's 2 tins a month or 24 a year = $432 for the year of coffee - fortunately, we stocked up bigly when we could buy it for 9 or $10 a tin (last year), but that is still around $200 per year for coffee, and I hate to admit, but coffee probably doesn't get me as far as my vehicle does.
On another note, mileage you put on your vehicle is irrelevant, unless you want the price of tags prorated to mileage, which would require monitoring
, which I suspect the OP would be vehemently against.
On another note, mileage you put on your vehicle is irrelevant, unless you want the price of tags prorated to mileage, which would require monitoring
, which I suspect the OP would be vehemently against.charles sullivan
Life of the Party
School support for counties who give more to Olympia than they recieve is being cust more and more it seems. We happen to live in one of those counties. The debtor counties are a different story.
and corporations were never classified as people before...until they got in front of the SCA note on allowing state bankruptcy | Macroeconomic Dynamics | Cambridge Core
A note on allowing state bankruptcy - Volume 29
Under current U.S. federal law, states cannot file for bankruptcy. While municipalities (cities, counties) can use Chapter 9 to restructure debt, states are sovereign entities under the Constitution and lack a legal framework to declare bankruptcy. They can, however, default on debt or technically face insolvency.
It will be an interesting turn of events, should it unfold.
True...and when they hang one ill agree that corps are people.
Money is speech too, another underlying issue affecting tax structure in a way that likely is adversely impacting lower and mid income families.
charles sullivan
Life of the Party
The Washington state retirement system relies mostly on investments for it's payouts. It's not as though the state is taxing people to pay out 9 billion to retirees.
No...it just makes people not want to be around grumpy old farts (maybe that's the desired result).
The constant bitchin' about cost just makes me glad to not be around a great many of my age cohorts.
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