Carpenters to Fight Elimination of Income Tax

Union news

Submitted by nominateducate on Sat, 06/14/2008 - 12:46pm.

June 13, 2008

Carpenters to Fight Elimination of Income Tax

The Carpenters union is one of many groups that are blasting an initiative petition in Massachusetts that would rob millions of dollars for construction and other state projects by eliminating the income tax.

Governor Deval Patrick has come out strong against the initiative saying that while President George W. Bush's anti tax rallying cry that "it's your money" may sound appealing "it's also your broken roads, it's your overcrowded schools, it's your broken neighborhoods and your broken neighbors. It's time we all started taking responsibility for that,and one way we take responsibility for that is by the income tax. So let us not do something foolish."

Foolish seems a good way to describe the initiative, which would result in more than $11 billion being removed from the state's tax base, more than a third of the state?s budget.

Even Republican Bradley Jones, the House Minority Leader is opposing the the repeal and told reporters he didn't think any other elected official would support the move.

Other economic and budget groups have said the move would result in lawsuits against the state for not fulfilling government mandates and would lead to economic disaster and overall chaos.

Despite the opinions of so many experts, a January poll by the State House News Service showed 45 percent of voters in favor of the question, with 46 percent opposing it.

"This is the type of initiative that would have a disastrous impact on construction, school budgets and virtually every state service," said NERCC Political Director Tom Flynn. "You can't just eliminate a third of state revenues and not feel a real pinch. We will be educating our members and helping educate the public about the very dangerous consequences this repeal would have. If we do that, I think it will be defeated."

The Facts About Eliminating Massachusetts' Income Tax

What is this all about?
A small group called the Committee for Small Government is qualifying a question for the November ballot that would repeal the state personal income tax. If it passes, this initiative will become law, costing the state more than $12 billion a year in revenues, or about 40 percent of the state budget. This is a reckless and bad idea.

What will happen if this passes?
It will significantly harm our communities, our children and our economy. Reducing state revenues by $12 billion dollars a year would

Force local communities to raise property taxes significantly to maintain local services.

Lead to unprecedented and unsustainable cuts in education. Our schools receive a substantial share of their funding from the Commonwealth. Teachers will be laid off, class sizes will increase and schools will close. Our children will not get the education they need. If this measure were to pass, UMass and our other public colleges would have to cut services and sharply increase tuition and fees, putting the cost out of reach for many students.

Lead to drastic cuts in our communities. That means fewer emergency response personnel, police, and firefighters; our roads and bridges would deteriorate; and many other services would be cut or outright eliminated.

What to do about it!
1. Pledge to Vote NO 2. Sign up for email on www.VoteNoMA.com to stay informed. As volunteer opportunities arise,we will contact you. 3. Tell your friends and family to Vote NO. Let them know that you think this is a reckless and bad idea. Send them to www.VoteNoMA.com and ask them to learn more and sign up to help as well.