Today the Tax Foundation released its annual Tax Freedom Day® report. In 2013,
the day United States’ taxpayers as a whole stop working exclusively for their
federal, state and local governments, and finally begin to work for ourselves
and our families, is April 18th. In Massachusetts, the date is April 25th — the
4th-latest in the nation.
And
yet today, Speaker DeLeo and Senate President Murray have proposed more tax
increases.
“The goal of these tax changes is to generate sustainable new revenues that do
not disproportionately impact one area of the state,” the Transportation Finance
Framework states. “The goal is also to ask those who derive the largest benefit
from improved transportation infrastructure — drivers and the business community
— to share in the burden of financing that system.”
I
thought that’s what we were doing when they passed the last gas tax increase in
1990, which went mostly into the general fund instead of promised bridge and
road maintenance and repair.
The
plan then goes on to propose tax hikes on cigarettes and computer software and
services by $326 million. We must ask: how do smokers and computers put an
excessive burden on the transportation infrastructure or benefit from it more
than others?
While we taxpayers were waiting (now 24 years and still counting) for the
“temporary” hike in the income tax to be rolled back to its historic 5% as
promised, instead the sales tax was jacked up to 6.25% four years ago, and a
local option meals tax was added. At least legislators haven’t gone back to that
income tax pocket, yet; we don’t know what awaits us in next week’s House
budget.
Massachusetts is still ‘only’ the fourth-latest state in the nation to finally
celebrate Tax Freedom Day – we have three states to claw over to celebrate on
the latest tax-free day of the year.
Beacon Hill may not be able to run a government efficiently, but it can strive
to be Number One in state taxation burdens.
More Information:
Tax
Freedom Day® 2013 is April 18, Five Days Later Than Last Year
2013 Facts & Figures Handbook: How Does Your State Compare?
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Citizens for Limited Taxation ▪ PO
Box 1147 ▪ Marblehead, MA 01945
▪ 508-915-3665