Senator firmly under Harry Reid’s thumb, not Washington State residents

WASHINGTON – Tomorrow, the United States Senate will vote on a comprehensive package to significantly reduce the Death Tax, extend critical tax provisions such as the Research & Development tax credit, a tax deduction for state sales tax and a college tuition tax deduction. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) earlier today announced her decision that she will oppose this legislation despite the enormous benefit for Washington State taxpayers. This all but confirms Cantwell is working for the narrow special interest of Sen. Harry Reid and not Washington State taxpayers.

Cantwell is claiming that she will oppose the comprehensive package because it may lower the wage for tipped employees in Washington.  However, according the United States Department of Labor, this is a false claim. 

In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN), Victoria Lipnic, assistant secretary of labor for employment standards at the Department of Labor, stated the department would interpret the bill\’s language as protecting current wages for tipped employees in the seven states (including Washington) and offered to work with lawmakers to clarify the intent of the legislation.

“Another vote in the Senate and another feeble excuse put forward by Maria Cantwell to vote against the interests of Washington State taxpayers,” said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform. “It’s just a disgrace that she would deny so many benefits to Washington State taxpayers because she was asked to by Sen. Reid and then come up with fabricated story to justify her unfathomable position.”

Among the items included in the package that will be considered by the Senate Friday:

  1. A Significant Reduction of the Death Tax
  2. An Extension of the Research & Development Credit Critical for Job Creation in Washington State
  3. Allowing Washington State Residents to Deduct Their State Sales Tax From Federal Tax Returns
  4. A Deduction for Timber Capital Gains
  5. A Tax Deduction for College Tuition
  6. An Above-the-Line Tax Deduction for Teachers’ Out of Classroom Expenses.
  7. A Welfare-to-Work Tax Credit