Broad support for Millionaires Tax in Washington

Findings reaffirm that taxing the ultrawealthy to fund education and health care is popular policy in Washington state

OLYMPIA, WA (February 9, 2026) — As legislators consider establishing a 9.9% tax on earnings greater than $1,000,000 annually, new polling analysis indicates 60% of Washingtonians support the state’s wealthiest residents paying their fair share to fund education and health care. These findings replicate previous independent polling completed in November of 2025, which found 61% of those polled supported such a tax.

If passed, advocates estimate a Millionaires Tax could bring in $3.5 billion annually to fund K-12 education, higher education, health care, and child care, a significant source of reliable funding for the vital public programs that support working families and a strong economy.

Just as significant: analysis also indicates voters would reject any attempt to repeal a Millionaires Tax at the ballot box. In multiple surveys conducted over several months, 62% or more of those polled indicated they would vote to maintain the tax. That’s in line with past history, when 64% of voters rejected a millionaire-funded ballot initiative to repeal the state’s capital gains tax in 2024.

Union members, working families, and advocates rallied on the Capitol steps at the end of January in support of progressive revenue. Photo: Balance Our Tax Code

Advocates estimate about 20,000 people would pay the Millionaires Tax, about .25% of Washingtonians. And even some of those few who would pay the tax have gone public with their support. In testimony during a hearing on SB 6346, businessman Jed Fowler spoke in favor of the Millionaires Tax, pointing out that the state’s current tax structure depresses economic activity, with far-reaching consequences.

“Being in construction supply, this company, its employees, and its customers, all flourish when there are two things: a robust middle-class purchasing new homes and steady reinvestment in our public infrastructure,” said Fowler.

A Millionaires Tax would “drive that shared prosperity because investing in our communities is fundamentally pro-business,” continued Fowler. “I’m willing to pay this tax, I should pay this tax, and others like me should pay this tax.”

Fowler’s perspective recognizes the massive increase in wealth for the richest Washingtonians in recent years, gains working families have not seen. A recent study from the Institute of Policy Studies found that even after the state instituted a capital gains tax, millionaires’ wealth grew by $748 billion in Washington state between 2022 and 2024. In 2022, the share of national income going to the working-class plummeted to its lowest level since the Great Depression.

Union members, working families, and advocates will gather at the State Capitol tomorrow, Tuesday, February 10 at 12:00 p.m. to rally for the Millionaires Tax, bringing constituents’ strong support for progressive revenue directly to legislators.

As lawmakers continue work on a Millionaires Tax, one thing is clear: Washington’s working families want to see the ultrawealthy, who have benefited enormously from a system built by working people, to pay their fair share.