Commonwealth Caucus Math Lesson
Rep. Sam Rohrer's (R-Berks) Commonwealth Caucus tax shift plan went down to defeat for the third time yesterday. This stupid attempt to eliminate property taxes to benefit business and industry by shifting the entire burden onto consumers may now, finally, be dead. How many times will the Representative continue tilting at his windmill before he learns some math and figures out why it will never pass? I question the intelligence of any nitiwt who voted for this bill.
The Commonwealth Caucus Plan would eliminate the current 6% sales tax and replace it with a 5% tax on a much broader array of goods and services. The current tax excludes things like food and clothing. The current tax raises approximately $5 billion, or about 20% of this year's budget. Rohrer's Plan eliminates those funds when it eliminates that tax. He has yet to address what vital state services will be cut to finance that loss of funds. Would the state police be eliminated? Road and bridge construction? Children and youth services? Would we be forced to close all state prisons? This is a very serious issue.
The other part of the Plan imposes a new tax, a very regressive tax for the poor. It would extend the sales tax on a much wider array of goods and add most services. The tax would lift all property taxes from industrial, commercial, and business properties. The entire $10 billion burden for funding our schools would fall on consumers. I think businesses have a vested interest in funding education. Well educated workers save businesses money in increased productivity. Shifting this entire financial burden to consumers, especially the working poor, is immoral.
The other major problem with Sam's Crazy Plan is that it only raises about $5.6 billion. If you recall it costs about $10 billion to fund our schools. Sam Rohrer's Plan doesn't add up. Combining the loss of $5 billion to the general treasury and the shortfall of $4.4 billion in the new Plan gives you a revenue shortfall of $9.4 billion.
Sam Rohrer is so stupid he can't do simple math. That's why his Plan failed.
The Commonwealth Caucus Plan would eliminate the current 6% sales tax and replace it with a 5% tax on a much broader array of goods and services. The current tax excludes things like food and clothing. The current tax raises approximately $5 billion, or about 20% of this year's budget. Rohrer's Plan eliminates those funds when it eliminates that tax. He has yet to address what vital state services will be cut to finance that loss of funds. Would the state police be eliminated? Road and bridge construction? Children and youth services? Would we be forced to close all state prisons? This is a very serious issue.
The other part of the Plan imposes a new tax, a very regressive tax for the poor. It would extend the sales tax on a much wider array of goods and add most services. The tax would lift all property taxes from industrial, commercial, and business properties. The entire $10 billion burden for funding our schools would fall on consumers. I think businesses have a vested interest in funding education. Well educated workers save businesses money in increased productivity. Shifting this entire financial burden to consumers, especially the working poor, is immoral.
The other major problem with Sam's Crazy Plan is that it only raises about $5.6 billion. If you recall it costs about $10 billion to fund our schools. Sam Rohrer's Plan doesn't add up. Combining the loss of $5 billion to the general treasury and the shortfall of $4.4 billion in the new Plan gives you a revenue shortfall of $9.4 billion.
Sam Rohrer is so stupid he can't do simple math. That's why his Plan failed.
posted by PA progressive @ Thursday, June 15, 2006
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