Select Media Mentions
The Birmingham News: Our View: The state House of Representatives should approve a bill ending the state’s 4 percent sales tax on groceries and nonprescription drugs
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) By Birmingham News editorial board April 08, 2010, 5:45AM When the Alabama House of Representatives debates a bill today that would remove the state sales tax on groceries, you can bet opponents utter these words, or some variation, more than once: “The whole bill is a redistribution of wealth.” (In fact, […]
The Birmingham News: Our View: The nation’s lowest-tax state reaps the nation’s highest amount from its poorest taxpayers
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) Alabama stands atop two national rankings. Auburn fans should be upset. But so should fans of the Crimson Tide. Obviously, we’re not talking BCS and AP pre-season college football rankings. Instead, we’re talking about two seemingly contradictory rankings of the state’s tax system that expose just how screwy it is. Alabamians […]
Montgomery Advertiser: Editorial: Are state’s taxes low? Not for all
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) August 15, 2010 Which statement is true? 1. Compared to the rest of the nation, Alabamians pay a low rate of state and local taxes. 2. Compared to the rest of the nation, Alabamians pay a high rate of state and local taxes. Actually, both statements can be true, or they […]
Birmingham News: OUR VIEW: It’s awful that Birmingham is tied for the highest sales tax rate in the nation among cities with more than 200,000 people
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) Published: Wednesday, May 25, 2011, 5:45 AM By Birmingham News editorial board If it’s possible to be No. 1 with a bullet, Birmingham is. It sits tied with Montgomery atop the charts. But it’s nothing you’d want to dance to. Birmingham and Montgomery have the highest general sales tax rate in […]
Ledger-Enquirer: Lobby for the poor won’t make any politician richer
December 21, 2012
(PDF of Original Post) Alabamians are being inundated, and almost certainly disgusted, by the tawdry details of a federal trial involving big money that lobbyists for gambling interests allegedly paid lawmakers for votes to legalize casino-style electronic bingo. Meanwhile, a far humbler lobbying effort of a very different kind quietly continues in Alabama, with hardly […]
Oregonian: TAXING THE RICH It’s not class warfare, it’s just common sense
December 21, 2012
(Original Post) The Sunday Oregonian (Portland, Oregon) September 20, 2009 SundaySunrise Edition TAXING THE RICH It’s not class warfare, it’s just common sense NEAL PEIRCE In a dramatic break from tax trends of recent decades, eight states have voted this year to push up the percentages of income that their wealthiest citizens must pay. Connecticut […]
Shanker Blog: Evasive Maneuvers
December 21, 2012
Evasive Maneuvers Posted November 10, 2010 Original Post In a previous post, I showed how the majority of funding for education and other public services comes from state and local tax revenue, and that low-income families pay a disproportionate share of these taxes (as a percentage of income). One of the reasons why this is […]
Politifact: Paul Krugman says poorest 40 percent of Texans pay more in Texas than national average
December 21, 2012
(Orignal Post) Says taxes paid by the poorest residents of Texas are above the national average. Paul Krugman on Monday, February 28th, 2011 in an op-ed column. Paul Krugman says poorest 40 percent of Texans pay more in Texas than national averageTrue New York Times columnist Paul Krugman sees Texas as a model for how […]
Christian Science Monitor: Taxes and the Rich: How Much Do They Pay Now?
December 21, 2012
(Original post) By Mark Trumbull April 15, 2011 As Republicans square off with the Obama administration on how much to tax the wealthiest Americans, a new report suggests the overall tax burden does not vary much by income level. As millions of Americans prepare to file their tax returns, taxes are also back in the […]
New Haven Advocate: Connecticut Can Still Raise Taxes on the Rich, Even if Washington Doesn’t
December 21, 2012
Original Post By Mark EnglerMay 24, 2011 In 2009, when then-New York Gov. David Paterson signed a temporary tax increase on the state’s wealthiest individuals — one of the so-called “millionaire’s taxes” that have passed in recent years in select states across the country — at least one multimillionaire was not happy. Rush Limbaugh proclaimed […]
Post-Star (NY): Commentary: Anti-tax Governors just getting started
December 21, 2012
Original Post By Matthew Gardner, Executive Director Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy July 28, 2011 Twelve new governors who ran on anti-tax platforms have now signed their first fiscal year budgets. All of them will tell you they were elected with a mandate to get their state’s fiscal house in order, rein in government […]
New Haven Advocate: Despite New Law, Poor Still F-ed, Rich Still Whining
December 21, 2012
NB: CTJ Modified the original story’s title, which can be found in the original article at the URL below. Original Post by Win Vitkowsky August 2, 2011 Connecticut’s wealthiest 1 percent still get a sweet deal on taxes, while the poorest 20 percent get screwed, according to a report released last month by CT Voices […]
Forbes: Massachusetts State No. 17 With 2011 Sales Tax Holiday
December 21, 2012
Original Post August 2, 2011 by Ashlea Ebeling Down to the wire — again. Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick signed legislation Aug. 1 making Massachusetts the 17th state to officially announce a back-to-school season sales tax holiday for 2011. Massachusetts’ taxpayers don’t have much time to make their shopping lists. The holiday, where just about anything […]
La Crosse Tribune: Matthew Gardner: Anti-tax govs just getting started
December 21, 2012
Original Post July 31, 2011 COMMENTARY Twelve new governors who ran on anti-tax platforms have now signed their first fiscal year budgets. All of them will tell you they were elected with a mandate to get their state’s fiscal house in order, rein in government spending and cut taxes. Some of them will even tell […]
Durham (NC) Herald-Sun: A break from tax holidays
December 21, 2012
August 5, 2011 EDITORIAL Let’s take a holiday from the sales tax holiday. That was a daring thing for any politician to say — voters do so love their tax loopholes — but on the lips of a Republican, it was practically radical. Sen. Richard Stevens, R-Wake, was among the state legislators who not […]
Fiscal Times: Corporate Taxes: Wake up, Small Business!
December 21, 2012
Original Post August 5, 2011 by Karen Hube Many executives of big public companies have shared their ideas about corporate tax reform in hearings before policy makers lately. Just last week, the CEOs of Wal-Mart, Kimberly Clark, CVS and PMC-Sierra said they are willing to give up corporate tax breaks in exchange for lower tax […]
National Post (Canada): Are the rich paying more than their share in the U.S.?
December 21, 2012
Original Post August 5, 2011 by Kelly McParland All good situation comedies produce spin-offs, so it should come as no surprise that the wildly popular laugh-a-thon know as the U.S. debt debate has led to a comic sideshow, now playing under the working title “Who pays more taxes?” The argument is tied to the increasingly […]
Daily World (LA): Analyst says tax holiday not prudent
December 21, 2012
August 5, 2011 BATON ROUGE — State officials say the sales tax holiday today and Saturday only costs the state $3.7 million, but the director of the Louisiana Budget Project says that money has to come from somewhere. Louisiana’s sales tax holiday Friday and Saturday is one of the most generous in the nation, said […]
USA Today: Critics say states should discontinue tax holidays
December 21, 2012
Original Post August 6, 2011 by Jayne O’Donnell The back-to-school sales tax holidays that start Friday in many states may be popular with politicians and retailers, but critics say revenue-starved states should abandon them. Seventeen states plan to give shoppers a break on sales taxes for school-related purchases this season. Massachusetts and Arkansas added a […]
Virginian-Pilot: Back-to-school shoppers hit stores for tax holiday
December 21, 2012
Original Post August 6, 2011 by Carolyn Shapiro Rich Tourville stopped Friday morning at JCPenney at Greenbrier Mall to pick up a birthday present and back-to-school clothes for his son, who will turn 5 on Sunday. The Chesapeake dad didn’t realize he would save the 5 percent Virginia sales tax on those items. The state’s […]
Baltimore CityBizList: Tax Flight Debate Is One-Sided, Professor Says
December 21, 2012
by Len Lazarick August 12, 2011 Professor Roy Meyers, the government budgeting expert at UMBC, says the focus of our ongoing stories and comment strings “on the flight/plight of the millionaires is a bit one-sided.” Meyers is afraid that the discussion of Maryland’s tax structure will go down the sorry path of the national debate, […]
AOL Daily Finance: The True Cost of State Sales Tax Holidays
December 21, 2012
Original Post August 12, 2011 by Sheryl Nance-Nash ‘Tis the sales-tax-holiday season, when states give the gift of tax-free shopping for clothing, computers and other back-to-school supplies. It seems like a good thing: Take a little pressure off the pockets of cash-strapped parents, make retailers smile and make politicians look good for supporting tax relief. […]
Nashua (NH) Telegraph: Leading Latinos: Hudson cardiologist struggles with injustice
December 21, 2012
August 16, 2011 by Simon Rios EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the second in a five-day series of stories profiling leaders in Nashua’s Latino community. Only a small percentage of Americans ever attain medical degrees, and even fewer hold unorthodox opinions on the origin of heart attacks. But Alejandro Urrutia, a native of Mexico and resident […]
Fox Business: Sales Tax Holidays: Not All that Meets the Eye
December 21, 2012
Original Post August 17, 2011 by Kathryn Glass There are very few situations in life that are truly a win-win, but the idea of a week of shopping sans sales tax seems like a scenario with little downside. On the surface, it is difficult to devise a disadvantage for a tax break on back-to-school shopping. […]
Huffington Post: Texas Tax System Heavily Burdens Poor Residents
December 21, 2012
Also featured in Huffpost Hill Digest on August 19, 2011 Original Post August 19, 2011 by Laura Bassett During his presidential campaign announcement speech last week, Texas Gov. Rick Perry lamented the “injustice” that nearly half of all Americans — the poorest half — “don’t even pay any income tax.” But in Texas, the tax […]
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