RHA Call to Action – Oppose B & O Tax on rental income

AT A GLANCE

Governor
Jay Inslee seeks to assess a new B&O tax against rental income

Contact Your State Legislators

Members can
find their legislative district and legislators’ contact information HERE.

Sample
Letter for submission to State Legislators.

Governor Inslee Contact Information:

Ph: 360-902-4111

Email Governor Inslee OPPOSING his B&O tax increase
proposal

***click here for online email submission form

Sample Letter
for submission to Governor Inslee

Mail:

Governor
Jay Inslee

Office of the
Governor

PO Box 40002

Olympia, WA
98504-0002

Rental Housing Association

2414 SW
Andover St, D207

Seattle, WA
98106

PLEASE CONTACT
YOUR STATE LEGISLATORS & GOVERNOR INSLEE IMMEDIATELY OPPOSING A
PROPOSAL TO ASSESS A NEW B&O TAX ON RENTAL INCOME

Governor Jay
Inslee’s newly released budget proposal includes a repeal of B&O
tax exemption for long-term rental of commercial real estate. Repeal of the
exemption would enact a new B&O tax at the service and other
activities rate on income derived from all long-term (30 days or more)
rentals of commercial real estate, including:

• Rental of Apartments,
  commercial buildings, mini-storage facilities, and leased
  departments.

It is vital
that all RHA members contact their State Legislators and
Governor Inslee
and voice their opposition to enacting a new tax on rental housing. RHA
asks that you send in emails, and make phone calls to your legislators and
the Governor’s office, and encourage anyone else you know to do the
same in opposing the creation of a B&O tax on rental income.

Why does RHA oppose this proposal?

Rental Housing
Owners provide a precious asset to all communities; safe and affordable
housing. Increasing taxes on the rental housing industry would only
serve to increase costs and reduce affordability to tenants. Tax
increases in lieu of greater government efficiencies and effective
spending of current resources is ineffective and the wrong way to fund
our State’s budget. RHA opposes this proposal for the following
reasons:

Uniformity of taxation

• RHA opposes taxes that
  discriminate against rental housing, such as business taxes and
  regulatory fees that are imposed on rental housing to raise
  revenue. The State Constitution includes a uniformity clause,
  which provides that “taxes shall be uniform upon the same class of
  property within the territorial limits of the authority levying
  the tax…All real estate shall constitute one class.” This means
  that taxes must be the same on real property of the same market
  value. Uniformity requires both an equal rate of tax and equality
  in valuing the property taxed.
• While other states have
  differential tax rates or different value standards that depend
  upon the separate classifications of property, such a system would
  not be constitutional in Washington. A 1960 Washington State
  Supreme Court ruling found the State Legislature’s 1959 extension
  of the B&O tax to the rental of real estate was an
  unconstitutional, non-uniform property tax.
• Imposing a B&O tax
  against properties already subject to local and state property
  taxes amounts to double-taxation for the same services received by
  other types of real property. This is discriminatory against
  rental housing.

Increases the costs of housing

• The practical impact of
  increasing taxes on rental housing is that rents will increase to
  cover the new costs imposed under Gov. Inslee’s proposal. Such a
  tax increase would negatively impact those who can
  least afford increased housing costs.

Sample letter to Legislature & Governor Inslee***PLEASE NOTE – personalized letters are strongly
recommended in lieu of using the sample provided below.

Honorable <insert name of legislator>,

I am writing
you to voice my strong opposition to the proposal within your budget
which would enact a new B&O tax against income generated by rental
housing.

In 1960 our
State Supreme Court ruled that an extension of the B&O tax to the
rental of real estate is an unconstitutional, non-uniform property tax.
I oppose taxation which discriminates against rental housing, and which
amounts to double-taxation of a property which receives no additional
benefits not received by other types of real property.

Additionally,
any tax increase upon rental housing will hit tenants in the form of
increased rents and other charges to cover the costs of operating
rental housing. Tenants represent a large population which can least afford
increased housing and living costs.

I respectively
ask that you withdraw your proposal to increase taxes upon rental
housing through the creation of a B&O tax on rental income.

Thank you for
your consideration.

Sincerely,

<insert name
here>