Rick Steves: A millionaires tax? Let’s try shared prosperity

A new tax on fat paychecks like mine was signed into law yesterday — and I like it. In 2029, Washington state will start collecting a 9.9% tax on income over $1 million. The 8,000,000 Washingtonians whose households make less than that will pay zero under this new tax and enjoy all the benefits of a better-funded state. And for the wealthy (like me and an estimated 30,000 others), every million dollars in taxable income that our households earn after the first million will cost us about $100,000.

It takes a lot of money to run a state as livable as ours. Yet Washington is one of only nine states that don’t currently levy a traditional income tax. Our state is still funded by consumption taxes, such as sales and excise taxes, giving us the nation’s second-most regressive tax code. (Only Florida has us beat.) And it’s time for Washington millionaires to pay our fair share.

Right about now, Republicans reading this are queuing up to holler their well-worn excuses: This tax will penalize, and therefore demoralize, job creators! Letting the rich get richer results in more wealth trickling down! Wealthy people will flee Washington for states with more regressive taxation! (Since California and Oregon already have a comparable tax, that would be distant lands like Texas, Tennessee and Nevada.)

As a wealthy person myself, I see this tax as essentially free money for all Washingtonians. Everybody gains. And speaking from personal experience, I know that anyone who earns enough to be subject to this tax is beyond the point where consuming more adds to their security, their well-being, or even, arguably, their happiness — meaning there will be basically zero human cost.

Consider the minuscule impact this tax will have on millionaires. Now, contrast that with the value of almost $4 billion a year in tax revenue once it’s smartly invested in programs that will help the roughly one-third of Washington households living paycheck to paycheck.

I’ve learned in my travels that even if you’re motivated only by greed, you don’t want to be filthy rich in a society with a huge gap between rich and poor. It’s just not a nice place to raise your kids. And remember: Shrouds have no pockets…especially if you’re a multimillionaire with no heart for your neighbors.

Plus, helping build a better community for you and your neighbors just…feels good. I learned this firsthand back in 2011, when — after years of receiving a Bush-era tax break for the wealthy that I didn’t need — I noticed that to pay for that tax cut, public funding for community programs and institutions was being decimated. Recognizing the practical value of investing my tax savings in my community, I’ve donated $100,000 a year to the Edmonds Center for the Arts and Cascade Symphony Orchestra ever since. Paying a “self-imposed wealth tax” and knowing I’m helping my entire community has brought me great joy for 15 years and counting. It’s far from heroic…but it is a little lonely.

The “millionaires tax” will make our state better than ever — not just for the working class and poor, but for everyone who values a healthy and sustainable future. And for us millionaires who are enlightened enough to realize that we’ve reached a point where consuming more won’t make us genuinely happier, it just feels right to pay a little extra. For me, it’s biblical (“To whom much is given, much will be required”)… It’s European (after all, societies that are equitably funded are happier than ours)… And — for those of us with a heart for the public good — it’s simply common sense.

European travel guide Rick Steves lives in Edmonds.

Published in My Edmonds News on April 1st, 2026.