State income tax, carbon tax not needed

OLYMPIA - Everybody associates March 17 with St. Patrick's Day, that one holiday in which we are all encouraged to wear green. Around the Capitol last week, March 17 brought a different meaning of "green."

That morning, the state Economic Revenue and Forecast Council announced the first state-revenue forecast for this year showed a surprisingly large increase of $3.3 billion through the 2021-23 budget cycle and $5.2 billion over the next four years.

It is the largest positive quarterly forecast change on record. Since the state operating budget must balance over four years, legislative budget...