Stores like tax holidays; tax experts pan them

Yahoo ^ | 8/22/2009 | Staff

[Red in Blue PA]

MONTPELIER, Vt. – Brad Borofsky hopes a sales tax holiday this weekend will draw more buyers to his outfitters shop in search of kayaks, canoes and other high-end outdoor items. After all, who wouldn't like a break on their taxes?

Yet a growing chorus of national tax experts — both on the right and left — are panning sales tax holidays as a gimmick that does little to boost the economy and hurts already-sagging state revenues more than they help consumers.

Massachusetts, Maryland and the District of Columbia have cut back on sales tax holidays or scrapped them altogether recently. In Massachusetts, which lost $14.9 million in potential sales taxes during a two-day holiday last August, a 25 percent sales tax increase went into effect this year.

Still, Vermont last year joined about 15 other states in holding sales tax holidays, which supporters like Gov. Jim Douglas and state chambers of commerce say can give consumers a break and retailers a boost in tough economic times.

[Red in Blue PA]

So more taxes are a good thing?????

[mathluv]

To dims, yes. They don't want people to deep more of their own money.

Texas is having one this weekend. The only problem - it is later than usual, and seems to have had less fanfare. Most people have already done their back-to-school shopping.

[from occupied ga]

are panning sales tax holidays as a gimmick that does little to boost the economy and hurts already-sagging state revenues more than they help consumers.

F... state revenues. Let the greedy bastards SPEND LESS. The ONLY major sector that grew its employment numbers in the recent economic rough times was, you guessed it, GOVERNMENT.

""To be GOVERNED is to be watched, inspected, spied upon, directed, law-driven, numbered, regulated, enrolled, indoctrinated, preached at, controlled, checked, estimated, valued, censured, commanded, by creatures who have neither the right nor the wisdom nor the virtue to do so. To be GOVERNED is to be at every operation, at every transaction noted, registered, counted, taxed, stamped, measured, numbered, assessed, licensed, authorized, admonished, prevented, forbidden, reformed, corrected, punished. It is, under pretext of public utility, and in the name of the general interest, to be place under contribution, drilled, fleeced, exploited, monopolized, extorted from, squeezed, hoaxed, robbed; then, at the slightest resistance, the first word of complaint, to be repressed, fined, vilified, harassed, hunted down, abused, clubbed, disarmed, bound, choked, imprisoned, judged, condemned, shot, deported, sacrificed, sold, betrayed; and to crown all, mocked, ridiculed, derided, outraged, dishonored. That is government; that is its justice; that is its morality."

Proudhon (for those few of you who might not have seen it before.)

[reaganaut1]

I agree, don’t have sales tax holidays. Keep sales taxes low all the time.

[Uncle Ike]

” Yet a growing chorus of national tax experts — both on the right and left — are panning sales tax holidays as a gimmick that does little to boost the economy and hurts already-sagging state revenues more than they help consumers. “

Gotta squeeze the last drop of blood out of that turnip...

By the bye, I took advantage of our ‘tax holiday’ to purchase a much needed replacement - parenthetically, a much-wanted upgrade - monitor for my computer.. The $20 I saved on sales tax brought the one I wanted into my price range..

Dear “tax experts - both on the right and the left”, THIS consumer was certainly helped - as were, I assume, WalMart and HP......

[sirchtruth]

Hmmm, I wonder why I see all those licenses plates from VT and MA up in the Walmart parking lot in NH. Yet they scream about how bad Walmart treats people.