Provide details on tax breaks

We’re getting our first look at the specifics of the tax breaks provided to Boeing, courtesy of the 2013 special session that secured Boeing’s pledge to build the 777X facility in Everett.

But it may be a long time before we see more.

It’s thanks to legislation that passed earlier that year that provides transparency into the tax incentives provided to Boeing, its suppliers and a range of other businesses in the state, as diverse as the makers of solar panels, beekeepers and hog fuel users.

The $8.7 billion in tax incentives passed by overwhelming margins in House and Senate, extended breaks, due to expire in 2024, until 2040. It also expanded a sales tax exemption for construction of buildings used in the manufacture of airplanes, such as the new 777X facility.

It’s the details on the sales tax break that we’re seeing now. The state Department of Revenue, following a public records request by The Seattle Times, released figures that showed Boeing saved $19.6 million in sales tax in 2014, a portion of what Boeing is expected to save each year between now and 2040.

So why aren’t we seeing more?

Because the state Department of Revenue is choosing to interpret the tax transparency provision very literally.

Where previously the public saw only estimates of the tax breaks enjoyed by particular industries, the change in the legislation sought to reverse the practice of hiding the specific details of the tax breaks benefitting individual companies. The change sought by Rep. Reuven Carlyle, D-Seattle, requires reports through the Department of Revenue as to the value of tax savings for individual companies within two years of any new or expanded tax break. Noting what’s good for both goose and gander, newspapers are among those whose tax breaks will be published.

But because the Boeing tax package passed by the Legislature extended breaks that would not have expired until 2024, the public can’t see the details on the new portion of the incentives until 2026. The Department of Revenue has determined the legislation only applies to newly created tax breaks, the extension that begins in 2025.

Carlyle told the Times he disagreed with the Revenue Department’s interpretation; the Legislature’s intent should have been clear that any change in legislation regarding a tax break should trigger the transparency rules. The Times is appealing the state agency’s interpretation. We hope other newspapers and open government advocates join in the request.

And while the Legislature’s to-do list for its upcoming 60-day session is filling up quickly, amending the transparency provision to make its intent even clearer may be necessary.

There’s a place for tax incentives, especially when used to win agreements that keep and develop jobs in our communities. Along with the jobs, part of the calculus that went into agreeing to the estimated $8.7 billion in tax breaks for Boeing, was the anticipation that building the 777X in Everett would provide $21 billion in tax revenue for the 16 years of the extension.

But the public needs to see the numbers — and not just rough estimates — on what we’re spending on tax cuts and what we’re getting in return.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Opinion

RGB version
Editorial cartoons for Monday, March 18

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Carson gets a chance to sound the horn in an Everett Fire Department engine with the help of captain Jason Brock during a surprise Make-A-Wish sendoff Saturday, Oct. 21, 2023, at Thornton A. Sullivan Park in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Editorial: Everett voters will set course for city finances

This fall and in coming years, they will be asked how to fund and support the services they use.

Devotees of TikTok, Mona Swain, center, and her sister, Rachel Swain, right, both of Atlanta, monitor voting at the Capitol in Washington, as the House passed a bill that would lead to a nationwide ban of the popular video app if its China-based owner doesn't sell, Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Lawmakers contend the app's owner, ByteDance, is beholden to the Chinese government, which could demand access to the data of TikTok's consumers in the U.S. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Editorial: Forced sale of TikTok ignores network of problems

The removal of a Chinese company would still leave concerns for data privacy and the content on apps.

Rep. Strom Peterson, D-Edmonds, watches the State of the State speech by Gov. Jay Inslee on the second day of the legislative session at the Washington state Capitol, Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Olympia, Wash. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Editorial: Legislature has its own production of ‘The Holdovers’

What state lawmakers left behind in good ideas that should get more attention and passage next year.

Comment: Measles outbreaks show importance of MMR vaccinations

The highly contagious disease requires a 95 percent vaccination rate to limit the spread of outbreaks.

Harrop: Should ‘affordable’ come at cost of quality of living?

As states push their cities to ignore zoning rules, the YIMBYs are covering for developers.

Saunders: Classified document cases show degrees of guilt

President Biden’s age might protect him, but the special prosecutor didn’t exonerate him either.

Comment: Clearing the internet of misinformation, deep fakes

With social networks’ spotty moderation record, users need to identify and call out problems they see.

Eco-Nomics: Price of gas, fossil fuels higher than you think

Greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels force unseen costs in climate disasters, illness and more.

Vote against I-2117 to keep best tool to protect climate

We voters will be offered the opportunity to repeal Washington state’s Climate… Continue reading

Lack of maternal health care raises risks of deadly sepsis

In today’s contentious climate, we often hear political debates about maternal health… Continue reading

Trump’s stance on abortion isn’t moderate; it’s dangerous

Voters deserve to know the facts and the truth about what will… Continue reading

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.