Poll: Wash. voters open to "sin" taxes

Voters might support higher "sin taxes" to take the edge off deep state budget cuts, but they seem to recoil at tax hikes for businesses, according to polling by political interest groups pushing for a statewide tax referendum.

Washingtonians also prefer a temporary tax increase that "sunsets" after helping the state get through its present budget crisis, according to the poll of about 800 likely voters across the state.

An across-the-board sales tax increase of 1 percent was initially unpopular, but voters seemed more willing to accept sales tax increases if they were presented as an average monthly cost of around $20 or less, the polling showed.

The research, conducted earlier this month by Goodwin Simon Victoria Research, a national Democratic polling firm, is part of a growing effort among left-leaning political interests to blunt the effects of the state's budget deficit, presently about $8 billion and growing through mid-2011.

The data was provided to The Associated Press by a person who had been briefed on the results. This person spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the research.

Lawmakers are planning steep spending cuts and one-time patches to solve the shortfall, but they may ask voters to restore some of the cuts by putting a tax increase on the statewide ballot.

A collection of labor unions, health care groups and environmentalists have been working with state officials on a possible tax package, with hopes that a case can be made to the public for more revenue to halt the deepest budget cuts.

The new polling conducted for that coalition shines a light on what kind of taxes are being considered by the people involved in a possible referendum. The research also provides a glimpse at the mood of voters during the lingering recession.

It describes an electorate that might be willing to raise taxes on specific consumer goods that are seen as unhealthy: taxes on soda pop, candy and gum, liquor and cigarettes did very well in the poll.

For example, raising the tax on a pack of cigarettes by 25 cents got a "yes" vote by a factor of two-to-one, as did a higher tax on hard liquor.

Extending the sales tax to candy and gum was slightly less popular, but still had a strong positive response. So did the notion of slapping a nickel tax on cans of pop.

However, those targeted sources don't provide much money when compared to the deficit of $8 billion or more.

A state Revenue Department analysis shows a nickel tax on cans of pop would bring in about $277 million over the 2009-2011 budget cycle. Extending sales tax to candy and gum would only bring in about $60 million.

As job losses mount nationwide, the polling also found that Washingtonians were less willing to embrace taxes tied to businesses. Extending sales taxes to business services, such as lawyers or securities brokers, were a losing question. Oil-related taxes were not seen as winners. A tax hike on bottled water also did poorly.

Overall, voters are much friendlier toward a tax increase that "sunsets" after a few years. A tax increase with a sunset clause got a nearly two-to-one yes vote in the poll, while a theoretical tax increase without a sunset was virtually tied.

Voters also appear more open to tax increases if they believe the Legislature has made deep cuts in spending that show tangible results, according to the person briefed on the research.

State officials were scheduled to get their own briefings on the materials through the weekend, adding another slice of information to the emerging budget picture.

Some prominent lawmakers have been very skeptical that voters would approve any tax package amid the hobbled national economy and soaring unemployment.

"I wouldn't bet on it," said Sen. Rodney Tom, D-Medina, the top deputy on the Senate's budget-writing committee.

That means the Legislature must put together a bare-bones budget that it can live with if voters don't agree to tack on more revenue, Tom said Friday. Once that happens, and deep budget cuts show real consequences, voters may be more open to higher taxes, he said.

Tom said the Senate is presently working on an $8.8 billion budget solution: Plugging a roughly $8 billion hole and leaving about $800 million in reserves to withstand further economic troubles.

The Senate GOP's budget leader, Sen. Joe Zarelli, R-Ridgefield, said the poll results weren't surprising - sin taxes are politically palatable, but have already been tapped over the years and now offer relatively little money. In any case, pushing more taxes onto skittish consumers could be a mistake, he said.

"The only way to get through this is like businesses and consumers are doing it: Choosing not to spend where they don't have to," Zarelli said Saturday.

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