Free Republic

The White House conceded on Monday that Senate Democrats such as Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) opposed President Joe Biden’s plan to raise corporate tax rates to pay for his massive $2.5 trillion infrastructure plan but failed to specifically address his concerns. Manchin said during a radio interview Monday he could support raising corporate taxes from 21 percent to 25 percent but not President Biden’s proposed 28 percent.

Taxpayer watchdog group: Emails show sales tax revenue going toward projects that are ‘not what most voters have in mind’..[ full title] ... A Colorado Springs tax watchdog group obtained communications between city employees that show discussion of using sales tax revenue for traffic reduction and bike lane infrastructure while other city officials have denied that’s where funds would be directed. City voters approved a road improvement ballot measure called 2C in 2015, which is up for renewal in the Nov. 5 election. 2C is a 0.62 percent sales tax increase that is supposed to be dedicated to road maintenance...

For too long the state has held our roads and bridges hostage while increasing spending on other priorities like Medicaid expansion, hoping we taxpayers get so frustrated by traffic we’ll agree to a tax increase. Well, this fall voters will have a choice. As the Denver Chamber of Commerce pimps a 21% state sales tax increase for transit, roads and a slush fund for cities, there will be an alternative as our Fix Our Damn Roads initiative will also be on the ballot. It will force the state to use its large surplus funds and re-prioritize less than 2 percent...

One question before the Supreme Court this term was a big one: As technology evolves, how do our laws governing commerce evolve with it? The answer, issued in the ruling held in a 5-4 decision on Thursday, is a bad one for taxpayers. Many proponents of an online sales tax have argued that we must completely revisit what we know about interstate commerce, and create illusory tax regimes to contemplate a brave new order of online transactions. In reality, none of this is true. For one, while it has been 26 years since the Supreme Court visited the issue in...

Sen. Ted Cruz is lobbying hard to prevent government regulation of the Internet, but one measure the Texas Republican supports is expected to create a sizeable budget hole for his state. Cruz, a likely presidential candidate in 2016, spent ample time last week promoting a permanent extension to an expiring ban on federal, state, and local taxation of Internet access that is currently being considered in Congress. The measure, which passed the House earlier this year, is popular in both parties and considered a lame-duck "must pass," as the ban is set to lift on Dec. 11. But a lesser-known...

That honor now goes to New Jersey. Tax reforms passed in the latest budget represent big improvements for corporations, but not so much for individuals. ... Still, New York remains a burdensome place to earn a living. The reforms did not change the state's poor rankings for having high sales taxes (No. 38), individual income taxes (No. 49) and unemployment taxes (No. 45). Meanwhile, the governor announced Tuesday that the state tax department collected nearly $4 billion in evaded taxes in the past year, a 5% or $200 million increase compared to the year earlier.The state collects about $87 billion...

Harry Reid and Wal-Mart hope nobody will notice their online revenue raid. Every time Congress has taken a serious look at proposals to boost Internet sales taxes, it has rejected them. That's probably why pro-tax Senators are trying to rush through an online tax hike with as little consideration as possible. As early as Monday, the Senate will vote on a bill that was introduced only last Tuesday. The text of this legislation, which would fundamentally change interstate commerce, only became available on the Library of Congress website over the weekend. And you thought ObamaCare was jammed through Nancy Pelosi's...

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy intends to propose one of the largest tax increases in state history Wednesday, seeking $1.5 billion in new annual revenue from income tax hikes on the wealthy and middle classes, and new sales taxes on clothing and other long-exempt products and services. In a plan outlined Monday to The Mirror by his senior staff, Malloy also would extend the corporate tax surcharge for another two years and restrict tax credits for the motion picture industry, while modestly increasing incentives for research and development. The sales tax rate would change for the first time in 20 years,...

AUSTIN, Texas — Online retail giant Amazon.com will close its suburban Dallas distribution center after a dispute with the state over millions in state sales taxes. The Associated Press obtained an e-mail Thursday sent to Amazon employees by the company's vice president of operations. Amazon's Dave Clark writes that the center will close April 12 due to Texas' "the unfavorable regulatory climate."

A U.S. District Court halted the imposition of a new Internet sales tax law last week. The court granted a preliminary injunction against the law, arguing discriminates against out-of-state retailers and violates the Commerce Clause. The case was brought by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) following the passage of HB 1193 in last year's legislative session. The law enforces three obligations which violate the constitution. The bill requires out-of-state retailers that do not collect Colorado sales tax to notify Colorado customers of their requirement to remit taxes to the Department of Revenue. Retailers must also report the customer’s name and...

Greetings from the Amazon Associates Program: We regret to inform you that the Illinois state legislature has passed an unconstitutional tax collection scheme that, if signed by Governor Quinn, would leave Amazon.com little choice but to end its relationships with Illinois-based Associates. You are receiving this email because our records indicate that you are a resident of Illinois. If our records are incorrect, you can manage the details of your Associates account here. Please note that this not an immediate termination notice and you are still a valued participant in the Amazon Associates Program. But if the governor signs this...

The state may get more bad fiscal news this week when the state controller makes his final tally of April sales taxes. It's no secret that the recession is taking a toll on the state's thinning coffers, but more troubling is that revenue is coming in slower than pessimistic forecasts. April, the state's largest tax-collection month, has fallen short of expected revenue by more than $1.8 billion in personal and corporate income taxes. The state was $750 million behind projected tax collection on April 1. There's good reason to believe April's sales tax receipts may disappoint, too. New car sales...

Sales and Use Tax Rate Increases on April 1, 2009 Effective April 1, 2009, the State sales and use tax rate increases by 1%. In addition, if you are in a city or county that has a new voter approved local district tax rate increase effective on April 1, 2009, your overall tax rate increase will be higher. The combined statewide and district tax rates that apply as of April 1, 2009, are listed on the reverse side of the Special Notice, Sales and Use Tax Rate Increases on April 1, 2009. For more information about the additional new district...

Montana still relies more heavily than do other states on property taxes for revenue, but the actual tax levels are not abnormally high... Doug Young, professor of economics at MSU-Bozeman, also told a meeting of Montana business and political officials that residential and commercial real estate is shouldering a greater share of the property tax burden in the state. Young spoke in Helena at the annual meeting of the Montana Taxpayers Association, a group that primarily represents business taxpayers. Property taxes account for 37 percent of tax revenue in Montana, while the national average for states is 31 percent... Income,...

Colorado is in the middle of the pack when it comes to taxes on gas, cigarettes and retail sales. Tax-infomation company CCH notes that Colorado, with its 2.9 percent rate, has the lowest state sales tax of any of the 45 states that charge one. That's before local counties, cities and districts start layering on extra sales taxes, though. (Sales tax in the city of Denver is now 7.72 percent.) Five states - Delaware, New Hampshire, Oregon, Montana and Alaska - charge no state sales tax, although some areas within the state do. Seven states - Minnesota, Nevada, Washington, Mississippi,...

FALLS CHURCH, Va.--Starting July 1, residents and drivers in Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads will be taxed by regional governments in which they have little say or influence. It's all part of a tax hike the Republican-controlled Legislature enacted earlier this year. And it's a sharp break from what the state has allowed in the past.

Beginning this week, New Jersey residents purchasing music and videos from services like Apple's iTunes and rival digital downloads e-tailers encountered something they'd previously only found at bricks-and-mortar counterparts: a sales tax. Democratic Governor Jon Corzine proposed the sales tax expansion earlier this spring to help the state to recover from a $4.5 billion budget deficit, an ABC News affiliate in New York reported recently on its Web site. The changes, along with a sales tax rate hike from 6 to 7 percent, took effect on Oct. 1. According to a CNET News.com special report completed in April, 15 states...

New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine inadvertently sent himself home today, along with the Democrat-dominated legislature, when he ordered non-essential elements of the government shut down during a budget impasse. Without a new budget, the New Jersey constitution says the state lacks the authority to spend money, so government agencies like the lottery, motor vehicles bureau, parks and recreation department and the state gaming commission were all ordered to shut down, along with the executive and legislative branches of state government. Gov. Corzine, who forced the budget fight by proposing an increase in the state’s sales tax, had no comment, since...

Single-family home sales and prices in Massachusetts fell 1.5 percent in March, capping a first quarter in which sales slowed dramatically from the previous year... ''Inventory is at record highs, so buyers are taking their time," said David Wluka, president of the Massachusetts Association of Realtors. ''They can pick among several houses so they don't feel the pressure." The slowdown in Massachusetts' housing market ran counter to a surprising pick-up in March in nationwide sales of homes, condominiums, and townhouses. Analysts had predicted that strong February sales... The housing market in Massachusetts ''simply isn't as strong as it is in...

New York State is losing more residents than any other state in the country, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics released early today. Based on surveys taken between 2000 and 2004, the figures show that New York replaced California as the net migration outflow leader, with an average of 182,886 people leaving a year, nearly double California's average for the same period. California led the nation between 1990 and 2000. The findings track the state-to-state movement in America. They do not include international immigration numbers. The New York City metropolitan region - which includes Long Island and parts of New...