July 31, 2009

Details of the Latest Tax Package

Posted at 2:46 PM by Meg Gray

Last week, budget negotiators announced that they had come to agreement on a revenue plan that would raise $990 million. Most of the revenue would come from a 1% increase in the state sales tax with lesser amounts coming from increases in taxes on purchases of cigarettes and alcohol and a 2% income tax surcharge on income taxes owed by all households.

The plan fell apart largely due to the Governor’s objection to the income tax surcharge being imposed on working families. As Elaine Mejia wrote earlier in the week, the proposed 1% sales tax increase would have been far worse on low- and moderate-income households than the income tax surcharge.
Now, it appears that House and Senate leaders have …

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July 11, 2009

Temporary taxes to end the stalemate? Let’s hope not.

Posted at 3:51 PM by Meg Gray

According to one recent media report, the NC House has a new idea for breaking the revenue stalemate – temporary tax increases.

If this is the case, it is a disappointing development considering that the Senate, House and Governor so far have all presented versions of permanent, reform-minded revenue packages that will not only help to raise the revenues needed for the next few years but will also create a more stable and fair tax system for the future.

There is emerging consensus amongst economists that the recovery will be “L-shaped” (or at best “U-shaped”) rather than “V-shaped.” In other words, it is going to be a while before the economy turns around. And history has shown us that revenue …

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February 15, 2008

Reich says we need more than temporary band-aids to strengthen the economy over the long-run

Posted at 1:30 PM by Meg Gray

  Robert Reich had a great op-ed in the New York Times on Wednesday that deserves a read.  He argues that addressing the growing income inequality gap is the only true way to stimulate the economy, especially over the long-term.  His case is compelling, particularly to those of us interested in finding and fixing root causes rather than putting band-aids on problems. 

His suggestions include increasing the wages of the bottom two-thirds of Americans, significantly expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit, strengthening our unions, and providing better educational opportunities to our low- and moderate-income children.

This is not to take away from the benefits of the short-term stimulus package signed this …

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