CapitolFax.com - Latest Comments in Most underreported story of the month

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Georges — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 15:24:50 -0000

Cool.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Augustinos — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 21:28:46 -0000

Nice...

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Aris — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:42:12 -0000

Cool!

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Concerned Taxpayer — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 08:59:46 -0000

Gross receipts taxes are discredited taxes that are making a comeback solely because they allow a state to hide the tax burden, either by embedding it into business to business transactions or by using the gross receipts tax to collect revenue from "outsiders."

Gross receipts taxes used to be very widespread but most states repealed them (including Indiana as recently as 2002) because they were so harmful.

These two articles contain numerous economic reasons why they should be rejected:

http://www.taxfoundation.or...
http://www.taxfoundation.or...

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Bill Baar — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 08:02:05 -0000

Wow, beware the progressives.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Nostradamus — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 21:33:55 -0000

We don't need a new tax. If the state would collect sales tax on magazines and newspapers,we
would have plenty of $$$$$ for education. Then we
wouldn't have to sell the lotto and tollways. All
the states that are contiguous to us charge sales
tax on those two items. Just think of all the
magazines that are sold daily, the subsriptions
and all the papers. Mega millions !!!!

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Citizen A — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 20:20:47 -0000

Maybe we don't need a PLAN - Just don't spend the state into poverty! This is Blago's crisis - without him we might not be in such a terrible financial delemna. Hope Mike and Emil have the balls to reign in this megalomeniac. God help us if they don't. Blago is NOT the solution - he IS the problem.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

the old republican — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 20:17:43 -0000

Didn't Laura Lunt Prussing, the Dem. one term state rep.from Champaign have an idea like that or taxing about everything in sight a few years ago?

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Concerned Voter — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 16:33:30 -0000

Wow, hit the small business owners with increases in the minimum wage and then with this, we'll be seeing more empty shops & restaurants.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Truthful James — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 16:24:21 -0000

Steve --

Thanks for admitting that 750 is not a supposed tax swap, but merely a way to increase taxes for a supposed structural imbalance.

Still looking for the unreported stories to which I earlier referred.

When a "balanced budget" can be adopted and specific appropriations do not include the windfall each year from increasing income and sales taxes, it would seem that the structural imbalance lies on the side of surplus -- until, that is, the covert appropriations using up all that surplus are made to benefit the governor playing Johnny Appleseed, and the incumbents providing much quid for a future quo.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

steve schnorf — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 16:00:35 -0000

I think Bill is right. If it is proposed by the Governor, it at least represents a plan; in fact, the only plan. Perhaps it will elicit counter-proposals or alternatives from some of our other leaders. Until Meeks re-introduced 750 today (so I heard) not another government leader had suggested any plan to deal with our structural budget imbalance.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Guy Fawkes — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 15:58:01 -0000

What happens when there are no businesses left to tax? Don't worry, Governor Blagojevich won't, he'll be long gone.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Truthful James — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 15:03:22 -0000

Citizen A --

That was the old Ted Kennedy plan...The government has the right to 100% of GNP and all taxes thereon. Then it can decide whhat part of the national income may be delivered to its citizens. It really is simpler that way.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

i d — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 14:26:00 -0000

Governor Foolish Ultimate Politician of Madness.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Citizen A — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 14:18:46 -0000

The gov should have his numbers guys at CMS and BOB figure out how much $$$ businesses need to cover their costs and then simply confiscate the rest. That apparently is the democrat master plan, both state and federal. Just DO it and put a stop to this drip drip drip chinese water torture approach to "governing".

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Yellow Dog Democrat — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 14:13:19 -0000

This is Mr. "No New Taxes", right? Now that Rod's $9 billion tax increase on businesses and consumers is floating around out there, the more modest education funding reform plan that includes property tax relief and closes our pension debt must look pretty good to the business community.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Lovie's Leather — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 14:09:06 -0000

It is pure insanity. It is an invisible sales tax, and I just bet Bill won't understand why his $10 haircuts turn into 12, or 15 bucks. He will probably blame it on business.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Citizen A — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 13:57:10 -0000

..."a plan to provide state-subsidized health insurance to state residents"... - If the state is going to provide health insurance then businesses would be well served to discontinue providing group plans. Shift the entire health costs to the taxpayers ? The governor is STUPID ! Like a little boy playing with matches . . . or in his case, himself.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Truthful James — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 13:56:35 -0000

Gentlemen (and ladies):

We are all wrong.

The most underreported story has to do with the removal of pork from the budget on a large scale, the development of efficiencies in government operations, the use of increasing sales and income tax revenues (resulting from the Bush tax cuts) to be assigned to capital and pension funding rather than hiring more people.

Didn't hear about that? Neither did I. Which must be why it is clearly underreported.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Utility Infielder — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 13:48:40 -0000

Voice, all good points. But..first what's the chances they will structure the bill with the protections for the small business'. Secondly, retail has shrunk, especially near the boarders. Why do we think that service businesses wouldn't follow. My doctor moved a few blocks over the boarder because of insurance reasons. Now my mechanic, accountant,masseuse ect. will follow.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Love the madness — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 13:16:25 -0000

Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri and Kentucky all support this idea. They welcome all the Illinois businesses that will be coming to their states!

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Gene Parmesan — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 13:09:09 -0000

I'd love to see if this will apply to agriculture in Illinois. If it does, farmers are going to be hit hard. Farmers take in a lot of revenue, but don't necessarily make a large profit due to the large costs involved. This idea will destroy rural economies, as farmers can hardly 'move' their land out of Illinois.

Who else will this not apply to as well? Whoever can cough up the most cash?

This idea may be just what the Republican Party needs in Illinois. Business groups will all get together and fight this with furor.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

RMW Stanford — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 13:05:23 -0000

"A way around this is to not make anything in Illinois and only pay the tax when it finally comes to the state in the form of a finished product for sale"

It will certainly encourage that, along with encouraging firms and consumers to make large purchases in neighboring states, instead of in Illinois. As it already been mention this will push business that are at the margin and trying to build up a costumer base out of the market and may well make some business that have a lower profit margin, unprofitable. This will be flat out bad for the state's economy and the poorer sections of the state populace will be hit the hardest.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

Truthful James — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 12:58:38 -0000

The hard cheese is taxing businesses who are losing money already. At the margin a restaurant going out of business as it tries to build it revenues over time to breakeven, is going to put people on the street.

Re: Most underreported story of the month

anon — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 12:34:43 -0000

A way around this is to not make anything in Illinois and only pay the tax when it finally comes to the state in the form of a finished product for sale. A gross receipts tax will be at a very small percentage, usually under 1%, so that should avoid a heavy increase in the final price of a certain product. Also, the higher the price of a particular product that has this tax hidden in the final price, the more the state sales tax will bring in. Unless you're captive to buying products entirely made and sold in this state, it would be cheaper to just buy it in another state or only buy products in this state made in another state. But who really knows what those are. Go by the retail price.