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Lawmakers should abandon tax talks
and work for a sustainable budget
By Rep. Dan
Kristiansen
It's April 15, tax day, the deadline to file your federal income tax
returns and give the federal government a substantial portion of your
income. Tomorrow, however, is also a significant day. April 16 is
Washington’s "Tax Freedom Day."
Congratulations! The money you earn after tomorrow is yours to keep for
the rest of the year.
According to the Tax Foundation research group, Washington citizens will
work three and a half months of the year (106 days) from
Jan. 1 to April 16, before they have earned enough money to pay this
year's federal, state and local tax obligations.
Tax Freedom Day comes nine days earlier than last year. Time to
celebrate right? Not really. Washington citizens are not paying less
taxes. The earlier date is because of the recession. More than 330,000
Washingtonians are unemployed. People's incomes are reduced. Citizens
have tightened their belts, resulting in fewer tax collections, which
accelerated Tax Freedom Day.
If anything, we should be concerned about Washington’s high taxes -- and
proposals that would further increase your tax burden. The Tax
Foundation ranks Washington the eighth highest-taxed state in the
nation. Out of all the states west of the Mississippi River, only
California ranks higher.
Forbes Magazine also ranked Washington eighth, noting our average tax
burden per person is $2,553. It said Washington is “the leading Western
state for taxes. There are low property taxes in the state, and no
personal income tax, but just try and buy something. Sales taxes--which
come out to $2,181 per person--account for 85 percent of personal taxes
paid."
The state's budget crisis is not due to lack of tax revenue. Revenues
have steadily increased in recent years. Two years ago, Washington had a
$2 billion surplus. Instead, it's a spending problem. The majority party
increased spending by 33 percent over the last four years – far beyond
the revenue increases.
These reports should serve as an alert that Washingtonians are taxed
enough. Instead, majority lawmakers are considering additional ways to
take more money out of your pocket.
There's a Senate proposal to add an income tax for those making over
$500,000. Soon after that was proposed, the Senate majority leader
suggested the threshold be dropped to $250,000. How long will it take
before this is expanded to people with lower incomes? As the Wall Street
Journal noted, "The new fashion is to take advantage of hard times to
target a class of people that few politicians are willing to defend --
and then expand that class."
Another idea would raise the sales tax to fund health care services.
Supporters have begun a major TV campaign and say it would be a
temporary two-year tax. When was the last time you saw a “temporary
tax?”
The governor wants to raise tuition by as much as 30 percent. KOMO TV's
Ken Schram says this tax increase would "financially flail working-class
families with the absurd notion that their kids would someday go to
college."
Enough! Lawmakers shouldn't be seeking ways to push Tax Freedom Day
further into the future. You're already working too long to pay
government.
Columnist Richard S. Davis summed it up best: If we want to help our
state get back on the road to economic prosperity, "lawmakers should
abandon talks of present and future tax increases and concentrate on
creating a sustainable budget."
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EDITOR'S NOTE:
State Rep. Dan Kristiansen, R-Snohomish,
represents the 39th Legislative District, and also serves as chairman of
the Washington House Republican Caucus. He can be contacted at (360)
786-7967 or from his Web site at:
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov/Kristiansen.
For more information, contact:
John
Sattgast, Senior Information Officer: (360) 786-7257
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