Voters to decide if WA Cares tax dollars can be invested in stock market

The first item on every Washington voter’s ballot is a proposal to add a few lines to the state constitution that would change how billions of taxpayer dollars are managed.

Senate Joint Resolution 8201 seeks to let the state make stock market investments with payroll taxes collected for its long-term care program, known as WA Cares. Any earnings would have to be used solely for the program’s beneficiaries.

If approved Tuesday, the Washington State Investment Board would be legally able to handle the program’s assets in a similar manner as it does pension and retirement funds.

This will allow for the tax dollars to be invested in a “safe and risk averse way” while producing greater returns for the program, said Heather Weiner of the Approve 8201 campaign in a recent debate at the Univers