Jesse Proudman built three companies in Washington state, turning ideas into enterprises that employed people and advanced technology in a once-welcoming environment for entrepreneurs. Now, as founder and CTO of the privacy-focused AI platform Venice.ai, he is relocating to Austin, Texas.
The catalyst? A new 9.9% “millionaire tax” on incomes over $1 million, signed into law in March 2026, which Proudman and many others view not as fair policy but as open hostility toward the very creators who drive economic growth.
This is no isolated case of one founder seeking lower taxes. It reflects a broader pattern: progressive governance that frames wealth creators as villains inevitably repels them, shrinking the tax base and burdening those left behind. Washington, long without a personal income tax, has crossed a constitutional and cultural Rubicon. The results are already visible in surveys showing nearly half of business leaders eyeing exits and companies far more inclined to expand elsewhere.
The tax, set to take effect in 2028 with payments due in 2029, targets high earners while Democrats like State Sen. Jamie Pedersen dismiss warnings of flight. Yet data from the Association of Washington Business tells a different story, and real-world departures like Proudman’s underscore the disconnect between political rhetoric and economic reality.
The Constitutional Sleight of Hand
Washington’s constitution requires uniform taxation of property, a category long understood to include income. A 2023 Supreme Court ruling on capital gains cracked that door; the new levy walks through it. Opponents, including Let’s Go Washington, argue this sets a precedent for taxing all income, not just millionaires. The initiative to repeal explicitly prohibits future income taxes measured by individual earnings.
Proudman warned precisely of this slippery slope. “When those folks leave, this will become a tax on everybody,” he noted. The state’s existing high tax burden already ranks it poorly nationally. Layering an income tax atop it risks turning Washington into a cautionary tale rather than an innovation hub.
Villainizing the Startup Community
Entrepreneurship once thrived in the Evergreen State. Proudman recalled a time when startups were seen as contributors, not targets. That changed as political winds shifted leftward. “Startup companies are being villainized,” he stated bluntly. The result is a brain drain in a sector—AI and tech—poised to define the future economy.
This hostility extends beyond taxes. Seattle’s socialist-leaning leadership, crime concerns, and regulatory pressures compound the issue. Other businesses, from manufacturers to legacy giants like Starbucks under former CEO Howard Schultz, have signaled frustration with the state’s direction. When creators of jobs and wealth feel unwelcome, they vote with their feet—and their capital.
Lessons from History and Human Nature
Economies flourish when they reward productivity and innovation, not punish it. States without income taxes consistently attract residents and businesses, fostering growth that benefits all income levels. Washington’s experiment ignores this reality, betting instead on class warfare rhetoric that history repeatedly disproves. High earners and founders are highly mobile; governments that forget this truth watch their revenue sources evaporate while services strain.
The pushback through Let’s Go Washington offers voters a chance to correct course. Signature gathering for repeal highlights a fundamental principle: citizens, not distant legislators, should decide the weight of government on their livelihoods.
In the end, policies that demonize success reveal a deeper misunderstanding of human flourishing. As Scripture reminds us in Galatians 6:7-8 (KJV), “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” Societies that sow envy and redistribution reap decline; those that honor diligent labor and stewardship reap abundance for generations. Washington stands at that crossroads. The departures of men like Jesse Proudman signal which path the state has chosen—for now.
