Oct 3, 2008 12:02 pm US/Eastern
Should Mass. Get Rid Of The Income Tax?
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
Voters in Massachusetts will have a crucial decision to make at the polls in November - and it's not just the presidential election.
Once again, they'll be faced with a proposal to get rid of the state income tax - an initiative that's getting more attention this time around because of the economic crisis.
It's called
Question 1 - a proposed repeal of the state income tax and capital gains tax.
Supporters say it will take money out of the hands of Beacon Hill politicians who have done nothing but waste it for years.
Opponents claim it's a reckless idea.
"This is throwing a bomb into government," said Peter Meade, head of the Vote No on 1 Committee. "If you vote yes, you're voting to increase the tax on your home."
"Your real estate tax will go up, your services will diminish dramatically," he told WBZ's
Jon Keller Friday.
Carla Howell, chair of the Committee for Small Government, which is sponsoring the petition, said this is about giving money back to the people.
"What we're talking about is a serious tax cut - $3,700 average each for 3,400,000 workers and taxpayers in Massachusetts," Howell told Keller in
August.
"What they need to do is cut the waste from the state government spending, which is out of control."
Meade said it's not that simple.
"This is a group of people saying 'Here's a free lunch.' And what they don't tell you with the free lunch is breakfast is going to cost you $1,000 and dinner will make you sick."
"For this state, local aid is such a significant part of the budget - if you take 40-percent of the state revenue almost overnight - in 8 weeks - the cities and towns will be damaged dramatically," Meade said. "That's the ambulance service, that's the teachers, that's the firefighters."
Howell said it will force politicians to end the waste to save the services.
"You can't find the waste until you open up the books. Show us the tax dollars, that's what we're saying."
"That's how you discover double-dipping pensions, that's how you discover sign painters making $100,000 a year… or toll takers making $60,000 a year… you just can't see the waste until you open up the books."
"They're going to try to scare voters, but I think a lot of voters realize there's a huge amount of waste. All we need to do is cut the waste."
Howell said the income tax repeal got 45-percent of the vote in 2002 and she believes this is the year it could be approved.
The latest
Survey USA poll conducted last week shows 31-percent of likely voters are certain to vote yes, 34-percent are certain to vote no, and 35-percent are not certain how they will vote yet.
To learn more from both sides, visit:
Supporters of Question 1: smallgovernmentact.org Opponents of Question 1: votenoquestion1.com
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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