Competitive Government Watch: Washington Income Taxes

The state of Washington put on the ballot a potential increase in income taxes for its high income citizens (5% for those over $200K, 9% for those over $900K). Then this happened:

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has sent letters to around 90 top employers and a few business associations in Washington urging companies worried about taxes to head on over to his state.

"As the State of Washington considers a multibillion-dollar tax increase for citizens and businesses ... I invite you to consider your future in America's new land of opportunity: the State of Texas," Perry wrote.

"If Washington doesn't want your business, Texas does. Texas has no personal income tax and no interest in getting one."

This was after the governor of Idaho had done the same thing.

Outcome: Voters rejected the income tax proposal in Washington. Some accounts put a lot of weight on the appeals from other states in swinging the tide.