(The Center Square) – The co-founder of DocuSign has come out in strong support for the initiative to repeal Washington’s new income tax, warning Washingtonian’s that he thinks the so-called millionaire’s tax will eventually apply to everyone unless it’s repealed.
DocuSign provides cloud-based eSignature and Intelligent Agreement Management platforms that let individuals and businesses create, sign, send and manage digital contracts and documents.
The company was founded in 2003 by Court Lorenzini and two others. They are headquartered in San Francisco, but they have offices in Seattle and Chicago and offices in several other countries.
Lorenzini told The Center Square in a Tuesday interview he’s not leaving either way, but in his work with business founders around the world, he’s got a pretty good idea of how Washington looks to people choosing where to establish the next business, and that looks isn’t great right now.
“Where do I locate? Where do I invest? Where do I build? Where do I employ? Look at the demographics across the country. Businesses are moving to states where the tax laws are more moderate. And that’s not by accident, that’s by choice,” said Lorenzini.
“The data suggests that if the state takes this step and keeps this income tax on the books, it will very likely have a downstream impact. And I certainly am hearing that in the conversations that I’m privy to.”
Initiative 645, backed by Let’s Go Washington, would repeal the 9.9% tax on household income above $1 million, approved by Washington Democrats earlier this year. The first collections of the tax will be in 2029, on income earned in 2028.
The No on I-645 campaign pushes back on those who suggest the tax will be expanded.
“The governor has promised to veto any expansion of the tax, and any attempt to expand the tax would inevitably end up in front of the voters as an initiative. In the end, voters will always have the final say about who pays this tax and can reject any efforts to expand it,” noted the No on I-645 campaign.
Lorenzini told The Center Square even though the tax hasn’t kicked in yet, the damage has been done.
“I have personal friends who have already left, literally on this issue alone. Once the state income tax passed, they hit the eject button. They said, that’s it. I’m done. I paid my capital gains tax. I paid all my other taxes. This is a bridge too far. And they have already left the state with their income, their business. I don’t want to lose any more friends,” he said.
As previously reported by The Center Square, data from the IRS concerning migration patterns found more than 68,000 tax filers left King County in recent years, with the trend only expected to get worse.
The data was analyzed by the Puget Sound Business Journal, which indicates those exiting King County took approximately $2.19 billion with them in adjusted gross income in 2023, the most recent year data is available.
People are also moving into King County, but it’s higher-income earners leaving the county, with more lower income earners moving in.
Lorenzini said he wants voters to understand what their vote means because it can be confusing when it comes to repeal measures. A ‘yes’ vote on I-645 would repeal the income tax. A ‘no’ vote keeps the income tax.
“My purpose for coming out and talking about this is simply to ask every voter in Washington to do their homework; to educate themselves on what a ‘yes’ and ‘no’ vote means in this context. ‘No’ means I want to keep the income tax. I want to have my income taxed at 10%. That’s what a ‘no’ vote means. Please keep taxing me. I want more taxes. A ‘yes’ vote says repeal.”
“They’ve designed this legislation to be confusing to voters. And I find that insidious,” Lorenzini said.
He said he also takes issue with the Public Investment Impact Disclosure statement, written by the office of Attorney General Nick Brown, to appear next to I-645 on the Nov. 3 ballot.
The PIID statement states: “This measure would decrease funding for public K-12 education, higher education (including universities and community colleges), and human services (primarily healthcare).”
The state attorney general’s office defended the PIID statement in court and in a statement in June to The Center Square.
“The law ensures voters receive information about initiatives they are asked to decide,” wrote Mike Faulk, deputy communications director in the Attorney General’s Office, via email to The Center Square.
Legal challenges to the PIID were unsuccessful.
Given no money has yet to be collected from the income tax, Lorenzini said the statement is entirely inaccurate.
“It was a misleading statement to the public, meant to confuse and confound people. “I don’t think it should have been allowed to pass that way, and I’m frustrated and that’s why I’m talking about it.”
Shasti Conrad, chair of the Washington State Democrats, issued a statement to The Center Square via email ahead of last month’s PIID hearing in Thurston County.
“Washington Democrats understand why MAGA mega millionaire Brian Heywood and his Republican enablers are terrified of voters learning the truth about their initiative to repeal the Millionaire’s Tax. It would rip away universal breakfast and lunch for students, drain our state’s coffers, and throw into doubt our entire tax system – all to line the pockets of millionaires and billionaires who treat Washington like the Cayman Islands,” wrote Conrad.