Editorial Rails Against Continued Car-Rental Tax

Stating that Washington state lawmakers are suffering from "a rampant outbreak of amnesia," a Seattle Times editorial is calling for an end to a 2-percent car rental tax in the state that goes toward construction of the Safeco baseball field.

The editorial calls for an end to a 2-percent car rental tax and a 0.5-percent restaurant tax.

House Bill 1997 abandons the earlier pledge to end stadium taxes, extending the restaurant tax through 2015 and the car-rental tax indefinitely.

The legislation breaks a vow with people paying the taxes who were told in plain English that the taxes would go away when the stadium was paid for, the editorial states.

Lawmakers promised 15 years ago to end stadium taxes once the bonds on Safeco Field were paid, and those bonds are expected to be retired later this year, according to the editorial.

But lawmakers' memories have gone blank "in the fog of budgeting," the editorial continues.