May 12, 2008 8:42 am US/Eastern
Renewed Push To Abolish Mass. Income Tax
BOSTON (AP) ―
Anti-tax activists have begun a second petition drive aimed at putting a question on the November state ballot which, if approved, would abolish the state income tax in Massachusetts.
Supporters of the initiative need to collect just over 11,000 signatures to put the measure on the ballot. A similar question appeared on the 2002 state ballot and was defeated, but did get the backing of almost 45 percent of voters.
The income tax accounts for about $12 billion in revenue for Massachusetts and critics are predicting chaos if the tax is eliminated, not only for state government but also for cities and towns that rely heavily on state aid.
Carla Howell, a Libertarian who leads the group Committee For Small Government, says she thinks the measure has a good chance at winning this time around.
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