Just take the mace and club us over the head please
Published March 13th, 2007 in Editorial.
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As the SC House of Representatives takes up the Budget this week, House Democrats are tripping all over themselves to find an excuse to not give taxpayers a break. And we use the term excuse lightly, because the babble they have come up with is hardly a logical thought…let’s look at today’s AP story:
COLUMBIA, S.C. | Democrats want a proposed income tax cut removed from South Carolina’s $7 billion spending plan, arguing most taxpayers would hardly notice the return of just a few dollars.
Now, applying their own logic and extending this “thought” to its natural conclusion; wouldn’t the remedy be then to increase the size of the tax cut so that ALL taxpayers would feel it right in the wallet?
We try to be fair here, we really do. However, this is nothing but tripe, hooey, and BS if you will pardon our French. The House Democrats ought to be ashamed of themselves…wait…they must be ashamed of themselves otherwise they would man-up and tell the taxpayers that they just don’t want to give you any money back at all.
Remember, they are the governement and they know how to take care of THEIR money. That’s why they have to come up with worthless excuses to not give it back to you, even if it is just a few dollars.
If this the logic behind defeating a tax cut; they might as well put that mace to good use.
[Update:] In the interest of fairness you will find below the flip, the press release sent out by by House Democratic Caucus. We still think they are wrong on this and the class warfare stuff is old.
South Carolina House Democratic Caucus
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 13, 2007
Proposed House Republican Tax Cut Gives $1,000s to Millionaires
While Giving Just $5 to Most South Carolinians
Millionaires will receive the vast majority of tax benefits under the income tax cut that State House Republicans have proposed. Unfortunately, almost 75% of all South Carolina families will receive little more than pocket change from the proposed cut.
Under the plan, which would be a permanent change to state law, a family of four earning the median income of $39,100 would receive just $5. An estimated 65% of all tax-paying families in the state make at or below $39,100. However, a family of four earning a million dollars gross income (which is less than 1% of the state’s population) would receive over $1,600. For a family of four with a gross income of $65,000, it doesn’t get much better. They would receive only $48, about the cost of a full tank of gas.
The House Democratic Caucus believes the income tax cut is fiscally irresponsible and does nothing to help working families - the majority of South Carolinians. The tax cut also ignores more important longterm funding needs by using one-time dollars called anualizations, a funding method the Governor has repeatedly opposed.
Vital funding for school buses, first responder’s communications systems, early education programs and children’s health care are being pushed aside to make way for the tax cut for millionaires. House Democrats have introduced amendments to the budget that will invest in the state, strengthen the economy and benefit working families.
Please see attached sheet “Proposed Proviso” for estimated benefit from the income tax cut.
For questions or more information contact:
Kevin Puleo, 803-242-1150
5 Responses to “Just take the mace and club us over the head please”
- 1 Trackback on Jun 6th, 2007 at 9:16 pm
What’s bad about the House is it’s not just the Democrats doing this. Many House Republicans will join with them as well, preventing poor ole me from getting an actual tax break from the state for once.
this is eerily familiar to Caroll Campbell’s second term capital gain tax cut that was the ultimat crux of operation lost trust. While no wrong doing was found (wink and a smile) it stunk like a kettle o’fish.
Velma,
This isn’t a tax cut on capital gains. We believe this a cut on the marginal income tax rate. What is referred to as an across the board cut.
We’re honestly not sure about the reference to shady dealings?
I have just discovered your website, and particularly like what I read,especially “just take a mace…” S.C. government has long followed the lead of the feds who favor the wealthy everytime they introduce or change laws.
Small change aides to the working poor offer no help at all. What is really needed in this state, and every other one across America, is relief from the heavy homeowner tax that is breaking all our backs. Even the wealthy are beginnming to complain. Especially are the retired people of this state facing a crisis. Frankly, I’ve worked 62 of my 71 years and because of what those irresponsible county councilmen in Newberry County have done to us, I am going to have to put my home on the market.
Since I haven’t read you regularlyl (I will now), you may already have addressed this issue. Last year, the General assembly addressed the problem, but only partly. Now Charleston school officials have joined the State Chamber and other muscle groups in a move to undo the progress made on property tax relief.
A recent article on the opinion page of one of S.C.’s dailies (the one that constantly supports tax increases of any kind), expressed solutions to S.C.’s broken tax system recorded by two very powerful leaders in this state—Harris DeLoach, chairman of the board of the S.C. Chamber of Commerce and CEO of Sonoco Products Co.; and Doug Echols, president of the board of the Municipal Association of South Carolina and mayor of Rock Hill.
It struck me immediately that ideas from two such influencial and educated icons certainly should offer a reasonable business approach. That is, until after probing into their thinking.
A key analysis in their thinking focused on last year’s tax shift, which “removed school operations from the tax bills for owner-occupied homes and funded them with a 1 percent addition to the sales tax.†It also noted that the legislature removed the ability of school districts to raise taxes on owner-occupied homes.
That’s kind of like telling us to use syrup instead of molasses, because syrup is not as sweet and sticky.
These two leaders probably either haven’t heard, or don’t really care, what has happened in 21 counties in South Carolina, including rural Newberry County where this writer lives. Home owners in these counties were saddled with unmerciful tax increases (in Newberry County some exceeded increases of more than 60 per cent). Counties were instructed by the Association of Counties to stick it to homeowners while they had the chance, and many of them did just that.
I’m positive the financial standings of both DeLoach and Echols are such that neither worry about feeding their families at this time of spirialing grocery prices driven higher by a greedy oil industry, much less worry over the prospect of having to sell their home because they can’t afford the taxes. Unfortunately, literally thousands of people across South Carolina and in fact the entire nation are about fed up with the politicians bleeding money from our pockets through higher and higher
Yes, the strain politicians have put on home ownership greatly exceeds the boundaries of Newberry County and the State of South Carolina. It has developed into a problem in every state in America.
A friend, whose primary residence is in Florida but who owns a home on Lake Murray, recently sent me an article that appeared in the Palm Beach Post. Headlined “Property tax election gets boosts,†it reported that Gov. Charlie Crist and Florida House Speaker Marco Rubio favor a special election this year to provide relief from rising property taxes.
Crist was quoted: “People are paying exorbitant property taxes at the local level and they wonder what the money’s being spent on, and so do I.†He cited rising property taxes and insurance premiums as the “two threats†to Florida’s financial security.
While I don’t have articles in my possession which would document my following example, I can tell you with certainty that uncontrolled property taxes is attracting many editorials in the non-daily grassroots press in neighboring Georgia.
I know this because I judged the non-daily editorial division of the Georgia Press Association this year. Each year the S.C. Press Association swaps judging to decide journalism winners with another state, and this year SCPA did Georgia’s and they did ours.
Although I’ve been retired 11 years, it has been an distinguished honor for the SCPA to invite me to be a judge. My favorite category is best editorial in the non-daily division. That’s because editors are not controlled by strong corporate policy and because of this, they can really reflect what was once the “real grassroots thinking†across America. In any event, my task that day led me to read approximately 150 editorials from newspapers all across the state of Georgia. While I didn’t record the number (that wasn’t my job that day) I was totally astounded by the number of editorials striking elected officials because of the high property taxes. Truly, people in America are getting fed up with never paying for their homes.
Although I’m a nobody compared to the notoriety of DeLoach and Echols, I know I speak for hundreds and hundreds of citizens of this state who will look politicians in the eye and tell tell them priorities are in the wrong place.
Yes, we all should be working toward the same goal, that of moving our state forward. But I ask you, what’s going to happen to all those hard-working citizens who will lose their homes because they’ve been taxed out of them. You and I know the answer to that. And, honestly, Uncle Sam can’t afford to provide shelter for all that have gotten help in the past, plus all the illegal immigrants who’ll get help in the future.
During my 40 years as editor of The Observer, I tried never to criticize without offering a solution. We don’t mind paying our “dues†to live in a growing society as long as they’re fair. What really ought to happen in our governments, both local, state and national, is to address the problem like every successful businessman does—we should operate in a responsible, business-like manner. The reason Charleston County and most other counties in S.C. are running out of money is because they open up the money facet without regard of where the flow originates. Destroy the great American dream of home ownership, and you destroy America.