Removing the Sales Tax on Food
The Tax Reform Task Force had its final meeting today. With only two dissenting votes (one Republican and one Democrat), the Task Force recommended that the Legislature remove the sales tax on food.
It's a big step, especially considering that the Senate President and the Senate and House Minority Leaders cast votes in favor of removing the tax. If a majority of legislators agree with the Task Force, we can figure out the details. It will take lots of debate and give-and-take, but we can get there.
One very interesting part of the discussion is that the Utah League of Cities and Towns informed the Task Force that the cities will oppose removing the sales tax on food, if it costs them anything. I clarified, and, sure enough, that's their position. If it costs the cities one penny, they will oppose it. This seems a bit strident, especially since the cities will receive significant inflationary and expansionary increases in their revenues this year, not to mention significant increases from franchise fees they place on top of escalating energy costs. Given that we represent the same constituents, either the cities or the legislature is getting the wrong signals. Citizens should tell one of us that we don't get it.
It's a big step, especially considering that the Senate President and the Senate and House Minority Leaders cast votes in favor of removing the tax. If a majority of legislators agree with the Task Force, we can figure out the details. It will take lots of debate and give-and-take, but we can get there.
One very interesting part of the discussion is that the Utah League of Cities and Towns informed the Task Force that the cities will oppose removing the sales tax on food, if it costs them anything. I clarified, and, sure enough, that's their position. If it costs the cities one penny, they will oppose it. This seems a bit strident, especially since the cities will receive significant inflationary and expansionary increases in their revenues this year, not to mention significant increases from franchise fees they place on top of escalating energy costs. Given that we represent the same constituents, either the cities or the legislature is getting the wrong signals. Citizens should tell one of us that we don't get it.
posted by steve u. at 11/28/2005
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2 Comments:
On this particular issue, I agree with the Utah Taxpayers Association that Option 4 is the least ugly. There are two reasons for my position, which are not entirely the same as those argued by UTA:
1) There is at least some relationship between the number of persons in a household and the number of children in the public education, therefore allowing the unprepared food sales tax to recover some education funding from those who have the most children in the public education system and, 2) Those who are least able to pay the food tax can get relief through a tax credit on their tax return, even if they paid no other state taxes. Many of those with children will file a return anyway for the Earned Income Tax Credit. I suspect that, in Utah, most of those who would qualify are already getting food stamps or direct Food assistance through private charities. There is no perfect system for imperfect so we just do the best we can.
I hope that someday there will be a citizen's tax group that will take a common sense approach to taxes as opposed to a sometimes liberal special-interest type like the Utah Business Taxpayers' Association.
Nonetheless, there are some decent statements here.
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