Question: When Is a Tax Cut a Tax Increase?
Answer: When it's proposed by our Democratic led legislature.
As reported in various news stories (here, in the Los Angeles Times (one-time registration required)), Democrats are proposing to lower California's gasoline tax. (As you may remember, earlier this year the State floated the proposal to add a "per-mile" tax to increase gasoline tax revenues.) The actual package would:
(1) Decrease gasoline taxes by $0.11/gallon
(2) Increase sales taxes temporarily by 0.25%
(3) Increase gas tax over the next ten years by $0.04/gallon
(4) Decrease the sales tax if the Federal estate tax increase in 2010-2011 actually happens. (The California estate tax is tied to the Federal. Thus, an increase in the Federal estate tax will increase revenue to California.)
I haven't read the legislation (as you might imagine, I'm a bit busy this time of year); I'll look at it in a week or two. But frankly the Republican comments that this looks like a Rube Goldberesque scheme to increase taxes appear dead-on accurate.
As reported in various news stories (here, in the Los Angeles Times (one-time registration required)), Democrats are proposing to lower California's gasoline tax. (As you may remember, earlier this year the State floated the proposal to add a "per-mile" tax to increase gasoline tax revenues.) The actual package would:
(1) Decrease gasoline taxes by $0.11/gallon
(2) Increase sales taxes temporarily by 0.25%
(3) Increase gas tax over the next ten years by $0.04/gallon
(4) Decrease the sales tax if the Federal estate tax increase in 2010-2011 actually happens. (The California estate tax is tied to the Federal. Thus, an increase in the Federal estate tax will increase revenue to California.)
I haven't read the legislation (as you might imagine, I'm a bit busy this time of year); I'll look at it in a week or two. But frankly the Republican comments that this looks like a Rube Goldberesque scheme to increase taxes appear dead-on accurate.