Payroll

This is where he payroll tax idea will be presented. Quick summary:

It appears that the City can implement a flat-rate payroll tax (this was the intended evolution of the “Head Tax”). Assuming the State Legislature created or allowed the City to create a standard deduction, a 1% payroll tax with a $1,000 standard deduction could raise in the ballpark of $138M annually (based on extrapolation from the number of jobs in Seattle according to the Puget Sound Regional Council and average annual salaries in Seattle and King County). Under this regime, no individual employed in Seattle earning less than $100,000 would pay payroll taxes. (Experts on tax incidence generally agree employees rather than employers bear the burden of payroll taxes.)