Springtime in Olympia: Politically Charged Votes
Lawmakers in the House took a series of politically charged votes Monday evening on House Bill 2081, a broad increase in taxes on the state’s businesses, culminating in a razor-thin vote to pass the measure in the wee hours of Tuesday morning.
The bill would impose a temporary surcharge on some of the largest businesses in the state and a broad permanent increase on all but the smallest businesses. That’s going to make a lot of folks mad, perhaps mad enough to do something come campaign season. So, some political caution was on display in the final vote, which as with House Bill 2049 was 50-48.
Nine members of the Democratic majority voted against the measure. Here’s a breakdown of some of the politics in play.
Appointed freshmen. Reps. Edwin Obras, D-SeaTac, and Osman Salahuddin, D-Redmond, have to run for election later this year as both were appointed to replace members who were appointed to the Senate. While both lawmakers represent districts generally considered safe for Democrats, either could theoretically be vulnerable in the primary over such a large tax vote. Salahuddin’s 48th District in particular includes many of the fancier communities along the eastern shore of Lake Washington, where taxing business might be viewed with suspicion.
https://www.postalley.org/2025/04/25/springtime-in-olympia-politically-charged-votes/