But the people who want the state
to make good on its promise to roll back the "temporary"
income tax hike are back again, petitions in hand, and this time
they think they will be able to make it past the opposition they've
faced in the past.
Members of the group Citizens for
Limited Taxation have started combing the area, trying to get
signatures for a petition that would decrease the state income tax
rate to 5 percent. It is currently 5.95 percent.
That decrease would give a
taxpayer who earns $50,000 a year a break of about $450. Supporters
say the money is important, but far more important is making the
state live up to a promise it made during the dark days of the late
1980s when the state was hemorrhaging money.
Ellen M. Bahan of Methuen is
determined to help obtain 100,000 signatures. She is an area
coordinator for towns including Methuen, Andover, North Andover,
Haverhill and Lawrence. One of her volunteers has already received
500 signatures and sent them in to his town clerk's office.
"I think the Legislature must
be made to keep its promises or they should be voted out," said
Ms. Bahan. "I am confident we will get enough signatures.
People's awareness has gone up, people's taxes have gone up and the
government has way too much of a surplus."
Barbara Anderson of Citizens for
Limited Taxation and Government has been fighting for almost a
decade to restore the 5 percent income tax rate.
"The Legislature, like it
does so often, wanted something, and this time it was the temporary
income tax," said Steven Cool, an area volunteer coordinator
for the petition drive. "This is 10 years after they promised
voters it would only be a one-year tax hike. This money should be in
your hands, so you can go and make your own spending
decisions."
During the past few election
cycles, CLT has organized a petition drive and garnered enough
certified signatures to earn the tax cut measure a spot on the
ballot, but successful legal challenges have kept it from going
before voters.
This year, Mrs. Anderson is
planning on a different outcome.
"I am more optimistic this
time. We need fewer signatures this year to get it on the ballot,
and now we have the governor's help," said Mrs. Anderson.
"I knew with his assistance we could do it despite the
challenges."
The challenges include getting
57,100 certified signatures, or signatures of registered voters, to
bring the question before the Legislature for a vote. In order to
guarantee the right amount of certified signatures, Mrs. Anderson
plans on obtaining at least 100,000 signatures from communities
across Massachusetts. As of Sept. 21, 700 volunteers had pledged to
make that happen. All petitions must be turned in to the town or
city clerk by Nov. 17 in order to be certified.
The state has a surplus that some
say exceeds $500 million, the largest ever, but legislators have not
kept their promise to drop the income tax rate back to 5 percent.
One challenge facing petition
organizers is to adhere to the Supreme Judicial Court's ruling that
no stray marks of any kind could appear on the petition. That means
if someone goes to sign the petition and makes a mistake, it would
invalidate the entire petition. Because of the severity of the
court's ruling, Mrs. Anderson said it would be considered sabotage
and a criminal offense for someone opposed to the petition to make a
mark on one of the papers.
If the petition makes it to
lawmakers, with its exact wording, and is approved, it becomes a
law. If the Legislature votes no, 9,500 additional certified
signatures, different from those on the original petition, must be
obtained in order for the question to come before voters next
November.
"I think the legislation
clearly acted under the premise that when the financial crisis was
over, we would get back to a 5 percent income tax. That little bit
adds up over time," said Steven S. Epstein, a Georgetown lawyer
based in Lawrence and one of the petitioners. "I personally
think the government has been stealing money from me since the day I
started working."
The main opponent of the tax cut
is the Massachusetts Teachers Association, according to Mrs.
Anderson and Francis J. "Chip" Faulkner, the associate
director of CLT. On every previous attempt to bring this question to
the voters, the MTA halted it before it could get on the ballot. The
last time CLT organized a petition drive, the MTA spent $2 million
fighting to invalidate the petition signatures.
"Last time, the MTA spent all
this money trying to invalidate a constitutional right. They are
abusing the rights of those who disagree with them," said
Steven Cool. "I hope it comes back around and bites them back.
Everyone gets their just desserts."
This is the first time CLT has had
the governor on their team.
Gov. A. Paul Cellucci and his
coordinators are responsible for obtaining approximately half of the
signatures. A report put out by the Cellucci administration
demonstrated that a tax cut would help Massachusetts withstand a
recession as well as convince more companies to locate in
Massachusetts. This has given the CLT volunteers the boost they
needed.