Questions 4, 5 and 6 line up on the Nov. 7 ballot like missiles aimed at the state
legislature. Trouble is, only the Question 4 rollback of the state income tax to 5 percent
is valid.
The other two missiles would turn right around and explode among the electorate at large.
Question 4 does away with the income tax surcharge imposed by the legislature during a
fiscal crisis 11 years ago. The crisis is long gone. Repealing the surcharge has not gone
very far on Beacon Hill. Even Democratic state Reps. Brian S. Dempsey and Harriett L.
Stanley, who represent Haverhill, say they will vote in favor of rolling back the income tax
from 5.95 to 5 percent over three years.
Stanley says the cut will hit "pork barrel" legislation but not education aid. She knows the
state can do without that money.
Question 5 would require health insurance carriers to guarantee certain rights to their
patients and providers. It would also prohibit conversion of non-profit hospitals, HMOs and
health insurers into for-profit entities until comprehensive health care coverage is enacted
in Massachusetts. This summer the legislature created a patient's bill of rights, making the
first half of the question irrelevant.
The second half would set off the kind of health care revolution in Massachusetts that Bill
and Hillary Clinton couldn't manage nationwide. Sounds great but who would pay? Everybody's
premiums would go through the roof and many companies would drop health care as a benefit.
Question 5 might also affect Haverhill's efforts to pass Hale Hospital over to someone who
could do a better job of running it.
Question 6 invites you to deduct tolls and state motor vehicle excise taxes from your state
income tax bill. Tolls and excise taxes are user fees of long standing. Those revenue are
spent on road maintenance. In fact, excise taxes come back to Haverhill and other
communities for that purpose. Socked by both Questions 4 and 6, the legislature would have
to cut spending appreciably. It would likely resort to cuts in local aid, placing more
fiscal responsibility for education reform on the shoulders of cities and towns.
The Gazette urges a "yes" vote on Question 4 and "no" votes on Questions 5 and 6.