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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 6, 2006
Contact: David Strom
Ph: (651) 294-3590 ext 201
Dedicated Funding for Political Purposes
House Proposal to Increase Sales Tax a Disaster
ST PAUL—Huh?!
The surprise offer of the Minnesota House leadership to propose a Constitutional Amendment that would include a tax increase to fund outdoors and clean water projects has fiscal conservatives steaming mad.
“No new taxes seemed to have morphed into ‘new taxes to fund our favored programs, not yours,'” said David Strom, President of the Taxpayers League of Minnesota.
House and Senate leaders have been discussing the possibility of a special session to pass a Constitutional Amendment to fund outdoors, clean water, the arts, and public broadcasting. Both bodies a version of the Amendment, with the House proposing dedicating funds from the existing sales tax, and the Senate proposing a tax increase to fund the dedication. The Amendments also differed in the amount that would be dedicated.
Since the regular session ended, there have been sporadic talks about a special session to pass the Amendment, but no agreement. Now the House has proposed a compromise that includes a tax increase but no funding for the arts and public broadcasting—projects favored by the more liberal Senate.
“House leadership may think that this is a cute move, giving in to the Senate on the tax increase but cutting their favorite projects. That’s not my view. This is a monumentally bad proposal, because it puts on record that the Republicans are the key authors of a tax increase. They proposed it, they push it, they own it,” said Strom.
There has been much talk about a growing divide between Republican elected officials and their fiscally conservative supporters. There is little doubt that Republicans authoring a tax increase would strain those relations further.
“There is a special irony in this proposal. It is commonly believed that both the Republicans and Democrats are trying to drive voter turnout with their versions of the Constitutional Amendment. But how politically smart can it be for Republicans to push for higher turnout from outdoorsmen when they simultaneous drive more dissatisfaction with other parts of their conservative coalition?” asked Strom.
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