Gates and his father, Bill Gates Sr., support an initiative to tax the wealthiest 1.2 percent of state residents, which would raise $2 billion a year for education and health-care programs shrunk by budget cuts. The state now collects no personal income taxes.
The proposal has drawn criticism from Microsoft and other large state employers, while billionaires including Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer, Amazon.com Inc. founder Jeff Bezos and wireless entrepreneur Craig McCaw are all funding a $6.3 million campaign to defeat it. Opponents say a tax will make it harder to lure business to the state and that the levy will be eventually expanded to other income levels.
“This is the Trojan horse for going after an income tax on the middle class,” said Ken Fisher, 59, the billionaire CEO of Fisher Investments Inc. in Woodside, California.
Gates Sr. put $600,000 into the $6.4 million campaign, state records show. Labor groups including the National Education Association, the Service Employees International Union and the Washington Federation of State Employees contributed about $4 million.
The elder Gates has said his son, William H. Gates III, whose fortune was estimated at $54 billion by Forbes magazine in September, the most in the U.S., will also vote for the initiative. John Pinette, a spokesman for the younger Gates, confirmed his support.
Current Microsoft CEO Ballmer contributed $425,000 to the campaign to defeat the measure, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen gave $100,000 and Microsoft General Counsel Brad Smith added $10,000. Billionaire McCaw put in $2,500, records show.
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