Trump is going to raise taxes on the middleclass

LooseGoose wrote:Maine shows the folly of 'tax the rich' schemes

Yet last month, Maine Revenue Services reported that income tax collections for the year were largely unchanged, despite the dramatic rate increase. An associate commissioner for Maine Revenue Services told Portland's ABC television affiliate that the collections were “concerning” because “we would have thought with the surtax we would have received more in estimated payment, yet we didn't.”

Backers nonetheless insisted the tax increase was working, predicting increased collections … later.

Lawmakers in Connecticut are learning the same lesson. There, officials have raised taxes at least five times since 2011, and the state's top income tax rate has been hiked from 5 percent in 2008 to 6.99 percent today. Yet Connecticut's income tax collections are declining, and the state is struggling with large budget shortfalls.

In Illinois, lawmakers approved a 67 percent income tax rate increase in 2011 and raised corporate income tax rates 46 percent. They then spent much of the next few years approving offsetting tax breaks for specific companies to keep them from leaving the state. Two companies alone — Navistar International Corp. and Sears Holdings Corp. — received nearly $500 million in tax breaks to keep them in Illinois.

For some reason, politicians have to learn this lesson over and over again: Capital responds to incentives. If a state signals that investment isn't welcome, then that investment will quickly shift to other states.

GRR Spartan wrote:Kansas is quickly forgotten by dyed in the wool anti-taxers

This is one reason why many politicians who call for taxing “the rich” quickly vote to tax everyone, as was the case in Kansas this summer when large income tax increases were imposed on people of all income levels.

Oklahoma legislators should take note. The “tax the rich” model of state finance rarely survives exposure to reality.

Robert J Sakimano wrote:as long as poor people don't have access to affordable healthcare, I'm okay with it.