GOV, Gov. Blagojevich wants to pitch you on a new tax [D209]
Gov. Rod Blagojevich invites you to attend a community hearing on his Investing in Families Plan.
When? Thursday, May 10 4-6 PM
Where? PMSA, 8601 W. Roosevelt
Click here to RSVP.
Blagojevich has a proposal to significantly increase taxes on multi-million dollar businesses and using the money for schools, health care, property tax relief, funding pensions, etc. The new tax is called the "Gross Receipts Tax" (GRT). According to Wikipedia a GRT is used in the following states: Arizona, Delaware, New Mexico, Ohio, Texas and Washington.
Critics say the tax will have a variety of negative consequences. Businesses that have high volumes and low margins will leave Illinois. Businesses that can't leave Illinois will pass along costs to consumers.
Supporters of the GRT argue that some form of revenue enhancement is needed and the GRT hits the poor and middle class less than increasing other taxes, e.g. income tax, property tax and sales tax. (The Illinois Constitution prohibits charging wealthier citizens a higher income tax rate.)
Rich Miller (Capitol Fax Blog) wrote:
I think I like the GRT from the perspective of tax fairness. The United States has been shifting the cost of government onto the middle class and working poor. This trend should be reversed.
However, I'm not wild about Blagojevich's spending priorities.
As part of increasing the money for school districts we need to increase accountability for misspending money and we should really reflect on what constitutes a quality education in the modern era.
I am also skeptical of spending more money on health care at the state level. I think health care is too expensive a problem to be fixed at the state level. It really needs to be addressed at the national level.
What questions should defenders of Blagojevich's plan be asked?
When? Thursday, May 10 4-6 PM
Where? PMSA, 8601 W. Roosevelt
Click here to RSVP.
Blagojevich has a proposal to significantly increase taxes on multi-million dollar businesses and using the money for schools, health care, property tax relief, funding pensions, etc. The new tax is called the "Gross Receipts Tax" (GRT). According to Wikipedia a GRT is used in the following states: Arizona, Delaware, New Mexico, Ohio, Texas and Washington.
Critics say the tax will have a variety of negative consequences. Businesses that have high volumes and low margins will leave Illinois. Businesses that can't leave Illinois will pass along costs to consumers.
Supporters of the GRT argue that some form of revenue enhancement is needed and the GRT hits the poor and middle class less than increasing other taxes, e.g. income tax, property tax and sales tax. (The Illinois Constitution prohibits charging wealthier citizens a higher income tax rate.)
Rich Miller (Capitol Fax Blog) wrote:
Eric Zorn hits it right on the head today with a column about the governor’s gross receipts tax and business opposition. It all boils down to who you trust, Zorn writes. Do you trust that Blagojevich has come up with a reasonable, fair plan, or do you trust big business to take care of the uninsured and assume that their arguments against this “job killing” proposal are valid?
I think I like the GRT from the perspective of tax fairness. The United States has been shifting the cost of government onto the middle class and working poor. This trend should be reversed.
However, I'm not wild about Blagojevich's spending priorities.
As part of increasing the money for school districts we need to increase accountability for misspending money and we should really reflect on what constitutes a quality education in the modern era.
I am also skeptical of spending more money on health care at the state level. I think health care is too expensive a problem to be fixed at the state level. It really needs to be addressed at the national level.
What questions should defenders of Blagojevich's plan be asked?
Labels: Capitol Fax Blog, Eric Zorn, Gross Receipts Tax, Rod Blagojevich
posted by Carl Nyberg at
2:13 PM
7 Comments:
How and Why did the Governor pick PMSA for his meeting? My sources tell me it was because of his relationship with 209 Board President Chris Welch.
Carl can you please find out if it is true if the Chris Welch group,The Welch group,has recently rented real estate prpoerties to the state??
Also can you please find out for me about his Welch group signing a contract in the city of New Orleans ,with Mayor Ray Nagin, to build affordable housing in that City.I heard the contract was worth 35 million dollars.
By
Anonymous, at 7:26 PM, May 09, 2007
None of what you've posted squares with any facts that I know.
The Welch real estate guy is different than Emanuel "Chris" Welch as far as I can tell.
I think ECW floats this stuff to try to impress people and intimidate them into following him.
By
Carl Nyberg, at 8:09 PM, May 09, 2007
One question might be, why should any and all income and sales taxes be automatically off the table? The costs of GRT would be passed on to consumers. So why won't the governor even consider another way of paying?
Another one would be, how does it make sense to promote a plan that has no chance of passing? Phrased more politely, I'd like to hear the governor explain how he plans to build consensus around the plan.
By
Rob, at 10:46 PM, May 09, 2007
Now why did the Governor choose ,Chris Welch's masterpiece,the PMSA as the site for a community meeting???
According to my sources, the Governor,State Senate President Jones,the head of the teachers union for the state and other Springfield luminaries,called Welch personally and requested it.According to my sources, the Governor is so impressed by the PMSA and how Proviso showed the suburbs how to do a Magnet school,that he feels that the PMSA would make a great backdrop for his push to change the tax code, so school distircts can recieve more funding.
Do you think the Governor callled the newly elected Regional superintendent of schools in Cook County??
I heard Welch will speak at this event and will also do any interview with the school newspaper and Nicole Trottie's newspaper and might even be interviewed on the radio.
By
Anonymous, at 4:39 AM, May 10, 2007
I believe that the PMSA is such a success that our Governor wants to come to Proviso and have his picture taken it to promote his support for education.
The PMSA would never have been built if Flowers,Yarbrough and Kelly had there way!!
I guess Welch was right and those others wre wrong!I guess Welch had vision, and those other did not!!!
By
Anonymous, at 5:11 AM, May 10, 2007
Mary said: PMSA is not all it's cracked up to be. Kids there are not all geniuses. Ask the kids how many got D's in math or science in grade school. Welch didn't succeed in luring all the private school kids back to Proviso. At the beginning of the yr. the school started with several substitutes. Then the principal, asst. principal were fired. Then the schedules were changed. Because the schedules were changed, the classes had to be changed. Wouldn't you think if you wanted the best of the best you would have planned ahead? Is the school perfect now> Not with 3000 tardies to first period and increasing behavour problems! PMSA was only built to give out contracts and make fancy offices for administrators. As usual, education took a back seat. I will wait for the test scores next year to see if it's "all that"!
By
Anonymous, at 1:25 PM, May 10, 2007
Excerpts of Welch's speech:
"Honor never grows old, and honor rejoices the heart of age. It does so because honor is, finally, about defending those noble and worthy things that deserve defending, even if it comes at a high cost. In our time, that may mean social disapproval, public scorn, hardship, persecution, or as always, even death itself. The question remains: What is worth defending? What is worth dying for? What is worth living for?
I am only one, but I am one. I can not do everything, but I can do something. And because I can not do everything I will not refuse to do the something that I can do. What I can do I should do. And what I should do, by the Grace of God, I will do."
Wow, I got goose bumps listening and reading his speech!!
By
Anonymous, at 8:41 PM, May 11, 2007
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