Legislators in the 13th District shared their thoughts on legislation moving through the Senate and House, including a bill that would establish a 7% capital gains tax in Washington state, during a virtual town hall Wednesday.

Sen. Judy Warnick, R-Moses Lake, said during the virtual town hall senators had a five- to six-hour debate on Senate Bill 5096. Although Republicans were able to persuade some Democrats to vote against the bill, it ultimately passed by one vote.

SB 5096 would place a 7% tax on “Washington capital gains realized from the sale of long-term assets,” according to the bill’s text. The Senate passed the bill on Mar. 6 in a 25-24 vote. The House has yet to vote on its final passage.

“(A) capital gains (tax) is indeed an income tax, which is unconstitutional,” Warnick said.

The first time the Legislature tried to establish an income tax was in 1934, Warnick said, which voters continuously voted down since then. Multiple amendments suggested to SB 5096 were not adopted, for the most part, she said.

Rep. Tom Dent, R-Moses Lake, said during the virtual town hall if SB 5096 is signed into law, it will end up in court. This would, in return, drain the state’s resources because the state would have to defend the bill in court.

“It’s kind of an unbelievable scenario we’re facing here, but we will continue to push back,” Dent said.

Aside from the capital gains tax bill, Rep. Alex Ybarra, R-Quincy, Warnick and Dent also spoke about the many police reform bills that were introduced in this year’s legislative session.

Ybarra said during the virtual town hall some of the bills are “very far-reaching.” The key is finding the right balance, he said.

“(There are) very difficult bills to discuss and to bring into law because we’re not sure exactly where to draw the line,” Ybarra said.

Warnick said she has a general rule of thumb when it comes to voting on police reform bills. If a bill can both protect law enforcement officers and ensure safety within communities, she said she might support it.

“We represent the eastern side of the state. We represent counties and communities that support their law enforcement,” Warnick said. “We don’t represent Seattle and a lot of the bills that are coming to the Legislature are from Seattle folks.”

Dent said some law enforcement agencies, including those in the 13th District, realized there may be some shortcomings on their end. Law enforcement support a few of the police reform bills, but for the most part, not a lot are in favor of them, he said.

“I think we need to listen to them because they’re the ones out there on the front line taking the heat,” Dent said.

SB 5172, which would phase in overtime pay for some agricultural employees, was also brought up during the virtual town hall.

In addition to overtime pay, SB 5172 would also prohibit “the award of damages or other relief to agricultural employees seeking unpaid overtime due under the overtime statute,” according to the bill’s text. This prohibition would be applied retroactively.

“(SB 5172) would provide a safe harbor for our agricultural producers,” Warnick said.

Warnick supported the passage of SB 5172 during the Senate floor debate, she said, even if other Republicans did not support it “because it wasn’t done.” She supported it because she wants to continue negotiating with farmers.

“If we don’t, we’re going to have judges deciding the fate of our farmers and the people who work for them,” Warnick said. “We have to do something because we don’t want the courts to decide everything for us.”

Dent said the COVID-19 pandemic has put a lot of pressure on agricultural producers as prices “haven’t been what they need to be.” Dumping legislation like SB 5172 on those producers would make it harder for them to survive and stay in business.

“We’re all engaged in doing something about this,” Dent said. “We’re working as hard as we can.”