Two years ago, we looked at the proposed Tax Realignment Commission (TRAC) with much skepticism. We’re going to refer to it as SHAFT because you the taxpayer are getting shafted when its all said and done. Originally, the SHAFT (TRAC) report was going to be presented to the General Assembly as a whole pie to be voted up or down with no opportunity to amend.
Back then, I introduced an amendment to force SHAFT (TRAC) to make the proposal revenue neutral (they could not present a plan that raised taxes). I lost that battle by 1 vote. The argument was why would we want to tie the hands of SHAFT to propose a plan that couldn’t raise taxes? Exactly, lets tie the hands, feet, and gag anyone that would dare suggest we raise taxes on South Carolinians already suffering under an unsustainable amount of tax burden.
We were, however, able to whittle it down a little bit by allowing the proposal to be amended just like any other bill. After this change, I was supporting the concept, but eventually voted against SHAFT.
Here’s why.
SHAFT is nothing more that an attempt to provide cover to Columbia politicians to raise your taxes. Here’s how. The SHAFT proposal is adopted by the General Assembly. The politicians go home to screaming constituents because he/she voted to raise your taxes. The explanation? “We created a committee made up of a diverse selection of experts from all over the Palmetto State. They reported that this plan will make us more competitive. This plan will sustain our revenue sources in government so we can focus on making South Carolina a better place to live, breath, and hope…blah blah blah”.
You get the idea, right?
In the past, I’ve commented on TRAC here and here.
The Department of Commerce has a presentation in response to SHAFT (TRAC) click: here
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