Friday, April 16, 2010

If Veto Fails, New Sales Tax Items

You’re going to hear/read a lot about one issue facing voters in June. It is the Democrat so-called tax reform package. The plan does reduce the income taxes for those in the top brackets a little, but it also raises the tax for those in the lower tax brackets. That top bracket will be lowered from 8.5% to 6.5% while all taxpayers below 6.5% will be raised to it. Also, all deductions are eliminated and tax will be based on full income, not the income minus property tax, health care, etc.

That looks to me like a tax increase for many people, except based on income tax payers will be allowed some tax credits. Those credits stop, however, at higher income levels. In other words, the higher the income the lower the credits.

To pay for all this, the Democrats added sales tax to many items which cuts any relief from the income tax even further and even could cause many, if not most, tax payers pay more to the state.

On one of the forums I read regularly, As Maine Goes , State Rep. Jon McKane posted the following list of new items subject to the sales tax which he got from the Maine Merchants Association.

“The following is a list of items to be taxed if the people's veto fails in June. Please forward to anyone who owns, manages, works for, subcontracts or hires any of these businesses.

1. Auto repair labor
2. Candy tax up 70%
3. Dry cleaning
4. Meal tax increased to 8.5%
5. Lodging Tax increased to 8.5%
6. Wash, Dry, Fold laundry
7. Car Washing
8. Car Vacuuming
9. Liquor sold at restaurants / bars increased to 8.5%
10. Car Rentals up 25%
11. Telecommunications, 5% tax on service
12. Limousine services
13. $1 pp for taxi or limo to/from airports
14. Jewelry repair
15. Camera repair
16. Gun repair
17. Musical instruments repair
18. Electronic equipment repair
19. Lawn and garden equipment repair
20. Computer hardware repair
21. Office equipment repair
22. Tailoring
23. Shoe repair
24. Furniture repair
25. Movie tickets
26. Theater tickets
27. Tickets to lectures
28. Concert tickets
29. Festival tickets
30. Amusement park tickets
31. Water park tickets
32. Tickets to fairgrounds (except Ag fairs)
33. Tickets to race tracks
34. Tickets to carnivals
35. Circus Tickets
36. Sports Tickets (except school sports)
37. Museum Tickets (except non-profit operations)
38. Planetarium tickets
39. Animal park tickets
40. Petting zoo tickets
41. Aquarium tickets
42. Tickets to historical sites
43. Tickets to convention centers
44. Miniature golf
45. Billiard parlors
46. Go-cart courses
47. Paintball
48. Golf driving range
49. Tickets to auto shows
50. Tickets to boat shows
51. Tickets to camping shows
52. Tickets to home shows
53. Tickets to flower / garden shows
54. Tickets to animal shows
55. Tickets to antique shows
56. Whitewater rafting (unless on federally navigable waters)
57. Wagon rides
58. Sightseeing bus tours
59. Aircraft sightseeing
60. Helicopter rides
61. Hot air balloon rides
62. Sightseeing boat tours
63. Sightseeing railroad tours
64. Trolley tours
65. Hired bands for events
66. Hired DJ’s for events
67. Comedians
68. Hired clowns for kids parties
69. Jugglers
70. Ventriloquists
71. Bar cover charges (if band is playing)
72. Diaper services
73. Embroidery and monogramming
74. Pressure cleaning and washing services
75. Pet exercising
76. Pet sitting
77. Pet training
78. Pet grooming
79. Pet boarding
80. Picture framing
81. House cleaning
82. Furniture cleaning
83. Rug cleaning
84. Interior decoration
85. Meal preparation
86. Butchering
87. Art restoration
88. Rental of storage units
89. Moving
90. Vehicle towing
91. Boat mooring
92. Service provided by Maine Guides
93. Use of photos (leased)
94. Leasing of office equipment (copier, postage machine, etc)
95. Service contracts
96. Adult entertainment (aka exotic dancers)
97. Home staging for real estate
98. Motor repair on a boat (if not attached to boat)
99. Expanded list of “soft drinks”
100. Courier Services
101. Daily rentals of tuxedos, gowns, ski equip, etc
102. Rental of safe deposit boxes"

(Here is his post on the forum which says the same thing.)
 
The Old Gator urges a YES vote in June to repeal the Democrats’ shift and shaft tax reform scheme.
 
GiM

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