Will this year be different from the last 20? Will voters actually remember their mistreatment come election time?
Senate OKs 25% sales tax increase
(excerpted from the Boston Herald)
The state Senate approved a 25 percent sales tax hike last night and removed the exemption on booze, bringing recession-ravaged Bay State residents one step closer to paying more at the cash register.
The sales tax vote, approved by a veto-proof 29-to-10 margin, came after senators moved quickly to lift the sales tax exemption on alcohol in package stores, which they hope will bring in $80 million more a year for substance abuse treatment.
The speedy approval of the booze tax prompted a loud outcry from several Republicans who said they never got a chance to debate the question on the Senate floor.
“To put another tax on working people in the commonwealth of Massachusetts on top of everything else we’re doing today sends the wrong message,” said Sen. Robert Hedlund (R-Weymouth).
Out of the expected $633 million in additional sales tax collections - far less than the $900 million estimated by the House - $275 million will be dedicated to transportation. None of the money will be targeted to boost local aid in the Senate’s $26.7 billion budget.
Senate Minority Leader Richard Tisei (R-Wakefield) opposed the hikes, saying revenues won’t be as high as projected because shoppers will either slow their spending or take their business elsewhere, such as to sales-tax-free New Hampshire.
Full story
No comments:
Post a Comment