From the Everett Herald:
John Burbank, Executive Director
This past month I flew back to Vermont, where my dad lives. He is 91 years old now, and just broke his hip. So he has a long recovery in front of him, and I was there to help him along and bolster his spirits when he needed some encouragement.
My dad is in a rehabilitation center, where he is learning to “hop” on a walker, and not put any weight on the bad leg. He gets tired, but he perseveres, and he is making progress. He maintains an enthusiasm and interest in life, athletics, politics, and his family and friends. I got him a Kindle, but I am not sure he has figured that out yet!
Without the great professional staff at his rehabilitation center, the physical therapists, the nursing assistants who make sure he is comfortable, and the nurses who look after him, my Dad would not be making progress every day. Without the EMTs who got him to the hospital, the specialist who replaced his hip, and the other doctors who supervise his care and progress, my Dad would not be alive now. Without Medicare, the medical bills would have started to pile up.
Let’s put this another way: My Dad wouldn’t have had much of a chance if we actually took U.S. Senate candidate Clint Didier’s advice: “We’ve got to get rid of this protecting the weak.” Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: EOI , taxes, health care, government
The key question confronting state policymakers next year (and, if the Governor’s budget transformation project is moderately successful, the voting public this November) is this: how will we keep the public structures that underpin our communities and our economy – like public education, transportation, higher education, health care, and public safety – intact during the recession and on into the recovery?
Washington’s economy has shrunk dramatically as a result of the recession – and so has state tax revenue. Sales tax receipts have fallen sharply because people have slowed or stopped purchasing many goods, and property values have dropped as a result of the real estate bubble implosion, driving down property tax receipts. All told the damage has (so far) cost $12 billion over the 2009-11 biennium.
So far, state leaders have patched together a mix of budget cuts (37%), federal recovery funds (31%), transfers and other changes (24%), and revenue increases (8%) that have not only helped to balance the 2009-2011 state budget, but also forestalled an additional $2.4 billion shortfall through FY 2013.
However, as Columbian editor John Laird recently wrote, the steps taken so far are mostly one-time or temporary fixes, not a solution for long-term stability: Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under: tax and budget , budget, health care, I-1098, revenue
Peter Callaghan nails it in a wry, tongue-in-cheek column about taxes on candy and bottle water:
Some have said paying more for candy is the least we can do to keep public safety agencies intact, to assure that public schools and colleges don’t suffer even deeper cuts, to help maintain the already frayed safety net.
Well, I happen to think it is unfair to fund schools for Dick and Jane by taxing Mike And Ike.
I can understand applying the sales tax to discretionary purchases like clothing, shoes, cars, home improvements, restaurant meals, toilet paper and winter coats for children.
But when they go after life’s necessities like Hello Kitty Candy Lip Gloss and Harry Potter Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans (in the fabric bag) – not to mention new taxes on pop and beer and Arrowhead Mountain Spring Water that we need to wash down all those Gummi Worms – they have gone too far.
Filed under: tax and budget , budget, business, children, community, economic security, economy, family, health, health care, public policy, revenue, stimulus, taxes, washington state
Left to right: Marilyn Watkins, John Burbank, and Bill Gates Sr. sign Initiative 1098
It was deja vu all over again yesterday as supporters of Initiative 1098 heard a pep talk from Bill Gates, Sr. and picked up the very first petitions for the campaign — just like the Initiative 1077 kickoff that took place almost exactly one month ago. So what’s the difference between the two measures? And why was I-1077 refiled as I-1098?
In virtually every respect, the two measures are the same. If approved by voters, I-1098 will:
- Exempt every small business in Washington from the B&O tax with a $4,800 business tax credit;
- Reduce the state portion of the property tax by 20 percent;
- Create a modest income tax on income over $400,000 per year (for couples) or $200,000 per year (for individuals); and
- Invest the net revenue — estimated at over $1 billion per year — in education and health care.
The difference between the two measures is simply this: I-1098 adds language that ensures domestic partners are treated the same as married couples when it comes to filing a single or joint return for the new state income tax. And since adding language to a ballot measure effectively makes it a new initiative, Washington State requires the initiative to be refiled and assigned a new number by the state attorney general’s office.
Looking for more information about I-1098? Check out our I-1098 fact sheet and I-1098 policy brief.
Filed under: tax and budget , budget, health, health care, I-1098, property tax, public policy, school, tax reform
