Quote:
Originally Posted by Vetkin
I seem to remember a law passed in WA that made tab renewal a flat fee regardless of vehicle value, but I guess tax-happy western wa found a way to work around that.
I'm planning to move out of the Seattle area as soon as I've secured a place to go. Housing prices/rent and taxes here are ridiculous.
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That was a result of a Citizens Initiative by Tim Eyeman that was ruled unconstitutional but was enacted by the legislature afterward based on the results of the vote. Part of the reason that folks were so upset as to cut off the value-based tax was that the money was going into the general fund and being misused/not used on transportation. Part of this was also that the legislature changed the vehicle valuation charts so that vehicles (especially newer ones) were overvalued compared to their fair market value.
The ST3 proposition was put forth to raise money to built a mass transit system that will span from Tacoma to Everett. Only those people who live in the transit zone will pay the ST3 taxes and those monies will not go to the general fund but will be required to be spent on ST3. It was on the ballot and was approved by the vote. One issue with it was that the RTA tax was based on the same overestimating vehicle value charts rather than a more accurate market value chart. That fact was clearly stated in the proposition though so the voters were well aware of it when the approved it.
Make sure that whatever place you move to is outside the transit zone if you want to avoid the higher registration fees.