Payroll tax will hit hard this summer

House and Senate budget writers released their 2023-25 state operating budget proposals recently. It was a reminder that taxpayers have been very kind to the state’s coffers as revenue forecasts over the past few years have continued to increase. As a result of taxpayer largess and the majority party’s proclivity to spend every dime available, state spending has more than doubled over the past 10 years.

Has our population doubled? No. According to the Washington State Office of Financial Management, the state’s population in 2012 was about 6.8 million. The population in 2022 was about 7.86 mil...