How many sign-ins about the ‘millionaires tax’ were fake? Thousands, group says
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Invest in Washington Now alleges 15,570+ Senate and 22,250+ House suspect ‘con’ sign-ins
- Several public figures say their names were used and seek investigation
- Allegations raise questions about sign-in integrity ahead of Feb. 24 House hearing
Opponents of a proposed income tax on high earners in Washington state have pointed to the record number of “con” sign-ins on the bill as proof that it’s highly unpopular.
Now a coalition of “millionaires tax” proponents is casting doubt on those claims — and an investigation has been launched.
On Monday morning, Feb. 23, the pro-progressive revenue group Invest in Washington Now held a news conference detailing allegations of fraudulent “con” sign-ins ahead of Senate Bill 6346’s Feb. 24 public hearing in the House Finance Committee.
Among those on the call who said that their identity had been co-opted: state Sen. Victoria Hunt, an Issaquah Democrat; Larry Delaney, president of the Washington Education Association; and Adam Glickman, secretary-treasurer of the SEIU 775 caregivers’ union.
All say the record shows they signed in “con,” but that they support the bill.
SB 6346 would impose a 9.9% tax on annual household income above $1 million. Supporters call it a way to mend the state’s “upside-down” tax code while critics fear that the tax threshold would someday be lowered to include non-millionaires.
A letter Invest in Washington Now shared with reporters, which was signed by Delaney and SEIU 775 President Sterling Harders, called for Attorney General Nick Brown and Chief House Clerk Bernard Dean to launch an investigation into the allegedly suspect signatures. The group compiled a list of what they call “known false testimony submissions” to the House Finance Committee featuring more than 100 “confirmed fraudulent ’con’ sign-ins.”
In addition, a Feb. 23 news release from Invest in Washington Now says that the number of duplicate sign-ins was sky-high: more than 15,570 con duplicates for the Senate committee hearing Feb. 6 (which had more than 80,640 sign-ins total) and more than 22,250 for the House hearing as of Feb. 22. The group says the pro sign-ins had 2,620 duplicates for the Senate hearing and 775 for the House hearing.
Hunt, a co-sponsor of the income tax, told reporters Feb. 23 that she’d learned that someone had signed her name without her permission on the “con” list — twice.
“I don’t know why a senator would sign into a House hearing,” Hunt said. “In any event, it was not me.”
Republicans have previously pushed back against the idea that the historic number of sign-ins could stem from bot activity.
Senate Minority Leader John Braun told reporters Feb. 10 that there was no evidence to support it, and that there’s a system in place to stop that from happening. The Centralia Republican said there was a relatively small percentage of duplicates in both the pro and con camps.
Dean, the House’s chief clerk, told McClatchy via email that the Legislature’s online committee sign-in application may have been used to create notable numbers of duplicate or fraudulent entries on the tax. He said people can use that application to state their views on pending bills without testifying.
He added that although the system employs a security guardrail to protect against automated manipulation and bots, “it is not failsafe.”
“We are investigating this incident and plan on making system improvements in the future to prevent this sort of abuse,” Dean said.
Asked how many con duplicates and pro duplicates the data show, Dean said via email: “I have not analyzed all of the duplicates up to this point.”
The raw data is available on the Committee Sign In website, he said.
A spokesperson for Brown said Feb. 23 that the attorney general’s office hadn’t had time yet to review the letter and its claims.
Invest in Washington Now notes that some duplicates could be due to common names, but that others are more suspicious. Data highlighted by the group indicates that a “Norm Harshaw” signed in dozens of times in each chamber, for example. The group says that falsifying such information via fake and duplicate sign-ins amounts to a civil and criminal violation of state law.
In another example, an “Alec Harshaw” signed in against the bill six times in the Senate on Feb. 4 within the same minute, at 3:29 p.m., according to state data.
Heather Weiner, spokesperson for Invest in Washington Now, said Feb. 23 that experts have looked at the list and underscored a couple aberrations. Firstly, she said, many of the sign-ins were made late at night. Secondly, the state Legislature’s CAPTCHA mechanism was circumvented more quickly than a human could do, she added.
“If it looks like a bot and it quacks like a bot, it is probably a bot,” Weiner said.
The conservative political group Let’s Go Washington issued a statement Feb. 23 saying that Democrats and their affiliated political action committees cry “fraud” whenever residents hold opinions that don’t comport with their own.
“Even with their wildest claims, this is still the most unpopular bill in history,” LGW founder Brian Heywood said in the statement.
Former Democratic U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer of Washington was another name on the House’s anti-SB 6346 sign-in list. Kilmer told McClatchy via email that he now works for the philanthropic Rockefeller Foundation, which doesn’t take stances on bills, and lives in Washington, D.C.
As for whether he signed in con, like the legislative record reflects?
“I can confirm that I haven’t signed in to support or oppose any legislation in Washington State in my professional or personal capacity,” Kilmer wrote.
Delaney, the Washington Education Association president, told reporters Feb. 23 that he was surprised when he learned that he’d supposedly signed in con “in the wee hours of the morning.” He pressed the importance of ensuring the accuracy of the legislative record and integrity of the state’s systems.
Delaney also called for an investigation into the Senate sign-ins for SB 6346.
Sarah Bannister, secretary of the Senate, told McClatchy via email Feb. 24 that there is no confirmation of bot activity for the income tax’s Senate hearing. She said they’re working to find evidence of duplicates made in the Senate. Although the system logs what was submitted, “we do not independently verify the identity of each individual who signs in,” Bannister said.
“During the interim, we will be working with the Legislative Service Center to identify steps that can ensure the validity of future sign-ins,” she continued. “This is something we want to take the time to evaluate carefully so any changes strengthen transparency and public access without creating unintended barriers.”
The House Finance Committee is holding a public hearing on the bill Feb. 24 at 8 a.m., followed by an executive session Feb. 27, also at 8 a.m.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with comment from the secretary of the Senate.
This story was originally published February 24, 2026 at 5:15 AM with the headline "How many sign-ins about the ‘millionaires tax’ were fake? Thousands, group says."
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