Even Reagan raised taxes

LA Times ^ | 2/26/08 | Bill Stall

[NormsRevenge]

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has joined the anti-tax Republicans in the Legislature -- that is, all of them -- in declaring, "You can't tax your way" out of the state's budget deficit problem. But, in fact, you can. California governors have been doing that for the last 40 years, and the most spectacularly successful were Republicans -- Ronald Reagan and Pete Wilson.

Anti-tax sentiment has become so deeply ingrained since the passage of Proposition 13 in 1978 that any GOP legislator who dares vote for a tax or fee increase is all but assured of losing the next primary election to a more ardent anti-tax candidate. Political ideology -- and the public's knee-jerk response -- trumps good public policy.

In earlier days, the governor and lawmakers determined the state's priorities first and then raised the revenue to pay for them. But now it's all cuts. ...

But how high is enough? The level of state and local taxes paid by Californians is just about the same as it was in 1970: 11.5% of income now, compared with 11.1%. ...

Reagan ended up approving a $1-billion tax increase on a $6-billion annual budget, which was, proportionately, the biggest tax increase in state history. It left a fat treasury for his successor, Jerry Brown, but much of that was doled out to cities and counties to make up for property taxes slashed by Proposition 13. ...

Wilson took office in early 1991, just in time for a recession that hit California hard. Before long, Wilson and lawmakers were facing a $14-billion state budget deficit on a proposed budget of $56 billion. Today's deficit, estimated at $16 billion, is close to that, but the budget is about twice what it was in 1991.

[NormsRevenge]

... and then along came aRnold and debt in the form of massive borrowing blasted off for deep space and debt like never seen before was tossed on top of all the spending like drunken silors.

[NormsRevenge]

entitlements, mandates, voter-approved initiatives,, your gubamint out of control.. and gaining speed.. and debt..

talk about a perfect storm a-brewin’..

[Redbob]

This article could be a textbook example of how to mislead with the selective use of figures.

[Redbob]

""You can't tax your way" out of the state's budget deficit problem. But, in fact, you can."

The Nobel Prize for Economics awaits the fellow who can prove that statement!

[kellynla]

If you deport the incarcerated illegals; you will not only lower jail & prison costs but you will open up slots for AMERICAN criminals who are roaming about the state unabated. Eliminate the state income tax and all the “bennies” for illegals and watch that budget get balanced! What they don’t have; they can’t spend.

If TX & FL can operate without a state income tax;
no reason why the eighth largest economy in the world can’t also.

Just a few years ago, there were BILLIONS in surplus; so it’s obvious that the clowns in Sacramento don’t have a clue of what they’re doing!

[ZGuy]

"taxes paid by Californians is just about the same as it was in 1970: 11.5%"

The other 20% are "fees" so they don't count.

[Dead Corpse]

Glad I wasn’t the only one to notice that. But it is about what we have come to expect from the LA Times.

[Dead Corpse]

They are working on it up here in MN. Our State is in a recession, but just yesterday the Legislature over-rode the Governors veto of a $7 billion tax increase.

[kellynla]

Not to forget, the 32 cents per gallon CA gasoline tax that is third only to HI & NV! That plus the Fed tax amounts to over 50 cents per gallon!

[TBP]

Ah-nold Kennedy Schwarzenegger is right for once. You can’t tax your way out of a recession and you can’t tax your way out of a deficit. Legislators think their job is to spend money.

Cutting taxes is the way to go, and while Reagan raised some taxes, overall he cut them, as this “reporter” knows. The simple truth is that for any level of revenue you want to get, there are two ways to get it. You can raise taxes and get a lot of revenue from a few people (the liberal way) or you can cut them and get a little revenue from a whole lot of people (the conservative way.) The former produces tight moeny, recession, and high unemployment. The lattrer produces a broadly productive economy with jobs and an economic boom.

For some reason,. liberals would apparently rather have the recessions. Maybe it’s so they can “help” the “victims.”

[rb22982]

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has joined the anti-tax Republicans in the Legislature -- that is, all of them -- in declaring, "You can't tax your way" out of the state's budget deficit problem. But, in fact, you can.

Well why don't we just raise the tax rates to 99% and be done with it then! It's obviously "good" public policy if it balances the budget /sarc.

Spending by government seriously needs to be reigned in across the country. It is getting out of hand.

[Amerigomag]

At the heart of every article written by a liberal is a big lie around which a hypotesis is extracted leading to a false and misleading conclusion.

In this article the big lie is:

The level of state and local taxes paid by Californians is just about the same as it was in 1970:..

The facts, available at the US Census Bureau, are:

California per capita tra burden in 1996 = $1586.61
California per capita tax burden in 2005 = $2724.31

That folks is over a 50% increase in unadjusted dollars in taxes paid in just 10 years.