{"id":413343,"date":"2010-03-10T19:03:38","date_gmt":"2010-03-11T00:03:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/seattletimes.nwsource.com\/html\/northwestvoices\/2011311626_taxtalkincomeorsalestaxandclosingloopholes.html?syndication=rss"},"modified":"2010-03-10T19:03:38","modified_gmt":"2010-03-11T00:03:38","slug":"tax-talk-income-or-sales-tax-and-closing-loopholes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/413343","title":{"rendered":"Tax talk: income or sales tax and closing loopholes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Income tax long overdue<\/strong><\/p>\n

Editor, The Times:<\/p>\n

Why is Sen. Lisa Brown\u2019s income-tax proposal \u201ca wretched idea,\u201d as Monday\u2019s editorial claims? [\u201cStay focused, Olympia,\u201d Opinion, March 8].<\/p>\n

As far as I can tell, the editorial board\u2019s collective mind thinks it\u2019s [a bad idea] because the state has more important things to do right now and it\u2019s some kind of trick from the Legislature. Is the Legislature sneakily opening the door to a high sales tax and an income tax reaching across all income brackets?<\/p>\n

That isn\u2019t likely. The state hasn\u2019t passed a general tax increase in 17 years. If anything, Washington\u2019s lawmakers have been too timid in taking on a tax structure that obviously needs to change. The current policy \u2014 asking the bottom 20 percent to devote more than 17 percent of their incomes to taxes while the top 1 percent pays just over 3 percent \u2014 is what\u2019s truly appalling.<\/p>\n

Paying taxes isn\u2019t pleasant by any means, but it is necessary if we want to keep a functioning state government. If Brown\u2019s proposal is approved by the Legislature and Washington voters, it would be a tiny step toward fixing a tax system that right now isn\u2019t fair or sustainable. Why is even bringing it up such an unspeakable sin?<\/p>\n

\u2014 Garrett McCulloch, Seattle<\/em><\/p>\n

Nip income tax in the bud<\/strong><\/p>\n

I read a letter to the editor extolling the wisdom of the powers that be to devise a proposition whereby the state\u2019s financial woes can be alleviated by taxing incomes [\u201cState income tax: current system unfair,\u201d Northwest Voices, March 8]. It appears that an income tax is acceptable as long as it is applied to someone else\u2019s income.<\/p>\n

A few years ago, a maple key fluttered down and found a resting place under the edge of my back porch. Nobody noticed it until it sprouted and four little leaves appeared. I left it alone and it didn\u2019t grow for several years and then it suddenly shot up to a height of approximately 10 feet. I do now wish I had pulled it up when it first appeared. It would have been so easy to avoid the unpleasant job of getting rid of it now that it has become a whole tree and a real problem.<\/p>\n

$200,000 is not the fortune many people believe it to be. Whomever in the Legislature thinks that it is a huge sum will probably be replaced by someone who thinks the figure should be much lower.<\/p>\n

Lets take out the tree before it sprouts.<\/p>\n

\u2014 John Steptoe, Bothell<\/em><\/p>\n

Income tax targets above-average earners<\/strong><\/p>\n

The editorial in The Times labeled the proposed income tax as a lame, desperate, awful extortion and an idea without political or economic merit. A progressive tax is a simple concept based on seeking additional taxes from the most fortunate and able.<\/p>\n

The proposed income tax on those making more than $200,000 is a step to stem the 30-year erosion of funding for K-12 public education and other services and to temper the galloping wealth disparity in the United States.<\/p>\n

The editorial would have better served the readers by helping us understand why those making four times the average wage \u2014 the average wage in Washington State is about $50,000 per year \u2014 could and should not shoulder a modest tax. The Times, of course, can be opposed to taxes if it wants, but to cheaply mislabel the legitimate political and economic concept of a progressive tax is embarrassing to the Pacific Northwest and smacks of yellow journalism.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Scott Barnhart, Seattle<\/em><\/p>\n

Soda and candy tax needed for the sake of kids\u2019 teeth<\/strong><\/p>\n

I agree that removing the sales-tax loophole for candy and sugary drinks is a good idea [\u201cA compromise plan for the state budget,\u201d Opinion, March 7]. And this is coming from a dark-chocolate lover! I will happily pay a bit more for my \u201caddiction\u201d if it funds dental and medical services for kids.<\/p>\n

Childhood obesity is a significant issue that needs addressing, but I also see dental disease as a major health issue affecting children. As a public-school nurse, I see kids daily who are in pain from untreated cavities and I\u2019ve observed kids with teeth destroyed to the gum line. Kids can\u2019t learn when in pain and dental disease is totally preventable.<\/p>\n

For many families without dental coverage, regular dental checkups or even a visit to the dentist for a major problem are luxury items. These kids end up in hospital emergency rooms with taxpayers and consumers paying the bills.<\/p>\n

Prevention is the operative word here. Money needs to be spent by investing in prevention programs. We must continue to support existing programs such as Access to Baby and Child Dentistry to provide dental care to low-income children.<\/p>\n

Putting the sales tax on candy and soda could help to make our children healthier and fund programs that work.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mary K. Myers, Kent<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Income tax long overdue Editor, The Times: Why is Sen. Lisa Brown\u2019s income-tax proposal \u201ca wretched idea,\u201d as Monday\u2019s editorial claims? [\u201cStay focused, Olympia,\u201d Opinion, March 8]. As far as I can tell, the editorial board\u2019s collective mind thinks it\u2019s [a bad idea] because the state has more important things to do right now and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2861,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-413343","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/413343","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2861"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=413343"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/413343\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=413343"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=413343"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=413343"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}