02.21.05

Baird and Cantwell to Introduce Interstate Tax Fairness Legislation

New proposal would prohibit Oregon fromlevying income tax on Washington state residents

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Brian Baird and Senator Maria Cantwell announced today that they will be introducing legislation in Congress to prevent the state of Oregon from imposing an income tax on Washington residents who work across the river.

“Southwest Washington residents working in Oregon are paying taxes to fund services they can't use,” Cantwell said. “They're getting a raw deal. Our country was founded on the notion that we oppose 'taxation without representation,' but that's exactly what's happening to Washingtonians who work in Oregon. Our bill would put a stop to this, and replace it with the common-sense notion of tax fairness.”

"This bill is about tax fairness and common sense," Baird said. "Washington residents who work across the river in Oregon are forced to pay Oregon 's state income tax, yet they receive few of the benefits those taxes provide."

Baird and Cantwell's legislation would prohibit states from taxing residents of other states that happen to work within their borders. The Oregon Bureau of Revenue reported that in 2002, southwest Washington residents filed 51,991 income tax returns in Oregon , totaling $104,074,000. This is money that funds social, educational, and healthcare programs in Oregon to which Washington residents do not have access.

"Senator Cantwell and I both recognize that it will be a tough fight to pass this legislation, but it is a fight the citizens of Washington deserve," Baird added. "The injustice of this situation could not be more obvious. Every year over 65,000 Washington residents who work across the river in Oregon have to pay an income tax to a state that does not represent them in government and does not provide them with health care or educational services."

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