Dems Want to Raise Taxes
Over the weekend, AP sent out an “analysis” by Christopher Wills entitiled,
Top Ill Dems offer 3 goals, 1 fix: TaxesWhat a surprise.
Of course, there is a war going on in Springfield, a source at the nexus of the battle tells me.
So, maybe, the taxpayers will luck out.
But, if they don’t, the real question is whether Republicans will be stupid enough to provide the votes to pass tax increases.
Another question is how many people will decide to move out of the state.
The daily shots against the McHenry County Republican Cat Tax continue on McHenry County Blog.
12 comments:
Considering that Illinois' income taxes are so much lower than many other states, a small increase isn't going to drive people out of the state.
Come on now.
COmbine income taxes with the cost of milk, bread, gas, licenses, graft, property and everything else
Hey Skinner, perhaps you have some red ruby slippers in your closet that you can put on, then close your eyes and click your heels while saying, "I wish energy prices were lower. I wish gas for state trooper cars was under a dollar a gallon. I wish George Ryan and Rod Blagojevich hadn't run up the state's debt. I wish the state's pension liabilities would vanish."
Did that balance the state's budget woes and take care of the future pension obligations? Oh darn, it didn't work. THAT'S BECAUSE THIS IS REAL LIFE, NOT A MOVIE! So you have you choose a real-life solution that you might not like (such as increasing the lowest single-rate personal state income tax in the nation) over the fantasy of reel-life endings found only at your local movie theater or at Blcokbuster.
Cal,
By the same token, Republicans clearly want to bankrupt our nation with all the debt they kept piling on before the adults were put back in charge. :)
Gotta agree with the other posters. Illinois residents are undertaxed for the services they deserve & require.
It's high time we all paid our fair share.
When John Porter was planning to run for congress, he passed a bill to create a commission on the future of Illinois. This was in the late 1970's. It was charged to look at Illinois in the year 2000,
Ironically, John did not get appointed to the commission. I did.
The conclusion of the commission was that Illinois had advantages. As I remember them, they were its central location, being a transportation hub, a trained workforce and a relatively low income tax--2.5% then.
Now, liberals may not think that tax rates make a difference in where people live--and where they local businesses--but a quick look at various states' growth rates over the last 30 years will show you that Illinois is falling behind.
So, shall we give up one of the advantages that Illinois has?
Obvious our Democratic Party leaders think that is "no problem."
And they are all old enough to have read Mad Magazine.
By the way, I've gotten one of those "What would you do, Cal?" questions on McHenry County Blog.
Tomorrow I shall answer it.
Illinois' total tax burden is 10th in the US when you factor in ALL of the multitudes of government taxing districts. Sorry, Bridget, but a 67% income tax increase isn't small and will drive people, small businesses and jobs out of the state.
Randall, it is hardly the poor taxpayers responsibility to bail out Springfield's fiscal irresponsibility and over spending. If they can afford to fund digital music festivals and the Illinois Arts Council and the Muntu Dance Theater and ...... hundreds of millions of non-line item pork spending items, they don't need any more of our money. They are saying they have more than enough of our money if they are already spending it frivolously.
Go right ahead and send them more of your money Bridget and Randall. Write the state a check right now. When you do that, THEN you can credibly expect all Illinoisans to pay more for the horrible way our state has been managed.
Cal -
>So, shall we give up one of the advantages that Illinois has?
Do you have any other evidence other than quoting a 30 year old study?
The world is much different now than it was in the 1970s. Illinois has new strengths & advantages due to its diverse culture & political leadership. I'd be willing to bet losing the tax advantage is far more than offset by other advantages.
And if we use the tax increase to get our house in order even further, that will probably make Illinois even more attractive.
Cal,
I think this is a multi-faceted issue. I believe you are right, we're going to have a significant tax increase in the next couple of years. If we keep on spending as we are now, we will need it...and we'll end up being a moderate tax burden state, rather than a low-tax one.
You know I am a less conservative Republican than you. And, I agree with much of the Governor's spending goals; more widely available health care, increased funding for public education, stem cell research.
I believe a part of the problem we face, that allows Democrats to enact their "painless" solutions is that the citizens are offered no alternative. What is the Republican answer to problems such as increasingly unavailable/unaffordable health insurance/care? What is our answer to overburdensome property taxes? How about the gross inadequacy of funding for some of our poor urban and rural schools?
There is no agenda. We don't say "there is no problem". so no solution is necessary. We don't say "there is a problem, but local governments, not the state, should deal with it." We don't say "there is a problem, and a state level solution is necessary, and here is what WE propose."
We leave the field to the Democrats, and complain about their spending. OK, what cuts would we make to bring the budget into balance over the next few years? How would we address the problems noted above?
The only attempt I've seen on our part was JBT's 4-year plan, and everyone simply ignored it, other than to complain about expansion of gambling.
Until we have an agenda, so that citizens can choose between differing views of the future, we shouldn't complain too much. I'm afraid Pogo had it right all along.
Ummm....Cal....I believe that when Speaker Madigan said during his innaugural that its was time to get Illinois out of the red, he was holding up a report by the Republican dominated Civic Federation, which has called for raising both the personal income tax and the corporate income tax.
Illinois has serious fiscal problems, and they aren't going to be solved by the partisan blame game. If you've got some detailed, constructive ideas for lowering property taxes, funding our schools, fullfilling our pension obligations, and balancing the state budget, I'd love to hear them. Everything else is just the same old angry noise.
I didn't watch the speech, but I don't think the study to which you refer was from the Civic Federation.
If they spend it--than you will pay for it.
Big spending and borrowing Republicans like Thompson, Edgar and George Ryan are just as much to blame as the irresponsible Democrats.
Randall Sherman is right--what can be done about the Pension debt besides taxes eventually?
I am against taxes but Ryan and Blago have made them a necessity
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