Photo by mosley.brian

The D.C. Council voted Wednesday to reject an amendment offered by Jim Graham (D-Ward 1) that would have raised income taxes on those who earn more than $350,000 a year.

Graham had proposed raising the tax rate to 8.9 percent for residents in the highest income bracket. All D.C. residents who earn over $40,000 currently pay taxes at the same rate, which is 8.5 percent.

Versions of the proposal had been strenuously advocated by activists who argued that without an income tax increase, catastrophic cuts to basic social services would be unavoidable in the coming year’s budget.

But eight council members, including Chairman Vincent Gray (D), Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3), Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4), Kwame Brown (D-At large), David Catania (I-At large), Jack Evans (D-Ward 1), Phil Mendelson (D-At large) and Yvette Alexander (D-Ward 7) voted to reject the amendment. Graham was joined by Marion Barry (D-Ward 8), Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6), Michael Brown (I-At large), and Harry Thomas Jr. (D-Ward 5) in voting for the tax increase.