November 1, 2010
An Unopposed Therefore Re-Elected State Rep, on the Chafee Promise that the General Assembly Will Pass His Tax Increase
Joseph Trillo, State Representative from District 24 (Warwick), who is running unopposed in the general election and will therefore be a member of the 2011 legislature, has this to say about Lincoln Chafee's assurance that the General Assembly will pass his 1% sales tax expansion, if Mr. Chafee is elected as the next Governor of Rhode Island...
I think this is a very big mistake. It’s treading on thin ice. Anybody who believes you make a proposal for 1% and it doesn't come back from the General Assembly at 2% or 3% is mistaken. If it doesn’t this year, it will another year. I will certainly not support it.
Why not simplify things and stay revenue-neutral (or thereabouts), and have a sales tax that beats our neighbors, driving business here?
If we stayed revenue-neutral and dropped all the exemptions, the sales tax would be 3.8%.
Let's call it 4% and boost the retail sector, or call it 5% and get the deficit-closing power of the Chafee plan -and- a moderate boost to retail.
Realistically, the difference to working families is negligible, less than annual fluctuations in food/medicine prices. The talking heads all speak about how hard it is and how folks are starving and cutting pills, a few percent at the end won't make a difference in that department. We can help the poor be more than '5%' more frugal by not letting them buy soda and candy with food stamps. The retail jobs the lower tax adds will also help ease the pressure on the bottom-end, there will be more entry-level jobs, and more tax-paying storefronts instead of empty shells.
Posted by: mangeek at November 1, 2010 2:38 PMmangeek, From Governor Chafee, you're not going to get anything more creative than a. "what isn't taxed yet that we can tax" or b. "what isn't taxed enough that we can tax more"
don't you know tax cuts are "fiscally irresponsible"!?
Posted by: George at November 1, 2010 4:01 PM