Ralston calls for a magic tax increase
And what is a magic tax increase? A new business tax - one that doesn't have negative impacts.
I believe the key to any revenue package - which probably would have to include a tax decrease (repealing the payroll tax?) with a tax increase (some form of new business levy that would not crush folks in this economy) - is providing political cover for those potential GOP votes. [Emphasis added]A tax that doesn't hurt or "crush" businesses or individuals with unemployment over 14 percent?
Now why didn't NPRI - or anyone else - think of that? It's magic! Budget problems averted! Oh, wait ... and wait again.
Now I honestly have no idea what kind of tax Jon Ralston's referring to.
I e-mailed him and asked him to clarify his statement and received a reply that didn't address the question.
Regardless, there's an interesting trend developing here.
Nevada's liberals are acknowledging the negative impact of raising taxes and the positive benefits of lowering them.
It's not just Ralston. During the campaign I received a mailer from a Democratic incumbent bragging that she had lowered business taxes for 70 percent of Nevada's businesses.
Former assemblywoman and new Senator Sheila Leslie has also warned that allowing the tax hikes to expire will raise business taxes on small businesses (7:40 mark), because of the way the Legislature structured the tax hikes in 2009.
Of course, their implications are right. Lowering taxes in a uniform way has a positive impact on the economy, job growth and businesses, and raising them has negative effects.
As for a tax increase that, in this economy, doesn't "crush" businesses? That would indeed take magic.
Update: Added a link to Ralston's article that I had mistakenly not included with the original post.
