At this point all I can do is laugh when I think about how some of my friends on the far right were naive as to think that sensible Republicans in Congress had failed to heed the message of the 2012 election and the current political … [Read more...]
The Growing Revolt Against Grover Norquist
Two weeks ago I penned a short piece titled “Grover Norquist Collateral Casualty of 2012?” where I broached the question of whether or not Norquist would become a casualty as a result of the coming fiscal cliff negotiations and where I … [Read more...]
Grover Norquist Collateral Casualty of 2012?
In light of the election post mortems taking place among conservatives, perhaps no one is more delusional, with the exception of Karl Rove, than Grover Norquist. Norquist, a high priest of limited government, is having nothing to do with … [Read more...]
The Tea Party, Taxes and Spending Cuts
A key goal of the Tea Party movement is the reduction of the national debt and thus the size of government via spending cuts. However, it is highly unlikely that the federal deficit can be reduced through spending cuts alone. That said if … [Read more...]
BHI: State tax revenues to increase by 9.8% in FY 2011 and by 4.4% in FY 2012
(BOSTON - Dec. 14, 2010) - The Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University (BHI) estimates that Massachusetts state tax revenues will come in at $20.363 billion for Fiscal Year 2011, a growth of 9.8% over FY 2010. Revenues will … [Read more...]
Tax Cuts and Their Efficacy: A Postscript
In two previous articles, "Maintain Tax Cuts for the Rich? Americans Don't Seem to Buy the Conservative Argument" and the "Efficacy of Tax Cuts Is now Questioned" I laid out two basic premises. One was that a majority of the American people … [Read more...]
Maintain Tax Cuts for the Rich? American’s Don’t Seem to Buy The Conservative Argument
We constantly hear the monotonous refrain from the right that now is not the time to raise taxes, even for the richest Americans, citing that this will somehow threaten the weak and halting recovery. Yet a composite number of 59% of the … [Read more...]
Could Adjusting Loopholes be Part of a Balanced Approach to Support Our State?
Peter Enrich, Law Professor at Northeastern University and former general counsel to the Massachusetts Executive Office for Administration and Finance has been testifying before the Revenue sub-committee on Tax Expenditures, and for this … [Read more...]
Nothing but the facts and very little good news from the Mass Budget and Policy Center
The proposal would reduce unrestricted local aid by 28.5 percent. The Governor, however, proposes increases in the meals and hotels taxes that could produce $150 million in new revenue and reduce the local aid cuts to 16.7 percent. The … [Read more...]
Talking about the government we want and how we pay for it.
Connecting the Dots Revenue decisions made over the past 20 years have left a structural deficit so large that our public structures -- from education to social services -- are crumbling. 9C cuts in FY 09 and threatened cuts in the FY 10 … [Read more...]