Where are WA’s millionaires? Data shows which areas of the state have the most

In pitching their proposed income tax on households earning more than $1 million a year, Gov. Bob Ferguson and Democrats argue that relatively few Washingtonians would be made to pay.

So what does the data show about where these high earners reside?

The Department of Revenue (DOR) sent McClatchy an estimated taxpayer breakdown by legislative district under Senate Bill 6346, which Democrats and supporters have nicknamed the “millionaires tax.”

Ferguson has said that fewer than 0.5% of Washingtonians would be subject to the tax, which would impose a 9.9% levy on annual income exceeding $1 million.

Supporters say the measure is needed to make the rich pay their fair share, and that it would deliver much-needed tax relief to working families and small businesses while investing in critical services. Opponents contend that the income tax is unconstitutional and unpopular, and they worry that lawmakers would later expand it to capture a broader swath of residents.

Some 20,791 taxpayers would be required to pay the tax, according to a DOR-provided summary of tax year 2028 collections by legislative district. The data includes an “other” category with 567 filers with addresses that couldn’t be linked to a district and 761 nonresident taxpayers; numbers for LDs 14 and 29, which fell below disclosure limits, were not available.

As for how much revenue would be raked in that year, all told: $3,052,721,420, according to the table sent by DOR.

The top three districts counted more than 2,000 filers apiece: the 41st LD (2,660); the 48th LD (2,371); and the 45th LD (2,004).

Each of these districts include parts of King County — the state’s most populous and wealthiest county.

On the other end of the spectrum, the 2nd LD spanning parts of Pierce and Thurston counties has 52 filers, per the table.

Tacoma Sen. Yasmin Trudeau’s 27th Legislative District holds 209 SB 6346-taxpayers, or about 1% of the total pool.

Trudeau said Tacoma is an inclusive city, one that offers services — including emergency shelter housing — when surrounding cities don’t. She said that without such a tax, Tacoma would be hit hard by losing critical services at the federal level, and the state won’t have the funds to replace them.

She added that she’s comfortable working to rebalance the state’s regressive tax code.

“Because for me, the people in my district that are struggling and that are working twice as hard for half as much, they don’t deserve for the bill to be on their backs,” Trudeau said.

House Republican Floor Leader April Connors of Kennewick said she knows of affluent Tri-Cities residents who’ve left the state because of its increasingly high tax burden.

Washington’s latest revenue forecast, published Feb. 16, was sunnier than expected thanks to last session’s historic set of tax hikes, Connors said. She hopes that Ferguson will rethink the need for an income tax this year.

In Connors’ 8th LD, which includes parts of Benton and Franklin counties, 195 taxpayers would face the new 9.9% income tax. She said many are donors who already give 10% or more of their income to Tri-Cities-area nonprofits, churches and other community happenings.

“When that’s taken away,” Connors asked, “how much more are they going to really end up being able to support all of our local ventures?”

You can look up your legislative district and see a breakdown of millionares across the state using this map:

This story was originally published February 23, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Where are WA’s millionaires? Data shows which areas of the state have the most."

Simone Carter

The Olympian

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