Raise Taxes? State Budget Already Projected to Get $2.7 Billion Extra in Taxes Over Next Three Years

Michigan Capitol Confidential ^ | 9/9/2015 | Tom Gantert

[MichCapCon]

Michigan Democrats and a new ballot initiative campaign are promoting tax hikes to pay for road repairs. The union-funded Citizens for Fair Taxes is collecting signatures to place on the ballot an increase in the state’s corporate income tax from 6 percent to 11 percent. That would reportedly generate an extra $900 million a year, which the measure earmarks to roads. If the campaign gets the required number signatures, the measure would be placed before state legislators, and if they did not pass it (a virtual certainty) it would then go on the 2016 statewide ballot.

Democrats are also pitching a plan to increase the state's corporate income tax from 6 percent to 9 percent, which reportedly would extract around $530 million more from business enterprises.

ForTheRecord says: The state’s fiscal analysts project that revenue from Michigan’s main taxes will continue to increase. The annual haul from these taxes has increased from $21.4 billion in 2013-14, to a projected $22.5 billion in 2014-15. Official estimates are that it will continue rising, to $23.2 billion in 2015-16 and $24.1 billion in 2016-17. The state Senate Fiscal Agency projects that state taxes will bring in an additional $1.6 billion tax revenue in the 2016-17 fiscal year compared to the one that ends this Sept. 30. Projections are not guaranteed, but for six consecutive years state revenues from state sources have increased (this does not include federal money).