revenue policies

Here's another budget article! [Itemlive.com]

We've just begun the calendar year 2012 and yet our state government is already gearing up for the fiscal year 2013 budget debate.  This still isn't a growth budget in the sense that programs and services cut over the past 4-5 years will not be restored and that more cuts should be expected.  Austerity wasn't a good economic and fiscal plan for growing the economy in Europe.  Why do our political leaders think the same failed economic and fiscal policies will succeed in MA?  That's a head-scratcher, for sure.

... Secretary of Administration and Finance Jay Gonzalez warns that more spending cuts will be needed to balance the [FY2013] budget.  “At the end of the day there are going to be lots of areas that are going to have to live with level funding or reduced funding or eliminated funding.”

“Most of the people coming in to meet with me are coming in saying, ‘Hey, the economy is coming back, the tax revenues are coming back, so can you put my money back,’” Gonzalez said. “What I tell all those people are that those expectations are out of whack with reality.”

The MBTA plans to cut services and raise fares.  Does that seem backwards to you?  Usually consumers are willing to pay a higher price if we get more, not less.  Unfortunately the current situation is that our public transportation system doesn't have adequate resources to run as usual...the operating budget is strained.  We also have heard about the capital and maintenance budgets with a backlog for repairs and replacements.

This is not a good situation for riders dependant on lower costing fares, and more frequent service.  We don't want more vehicles on the road; we can't afford more vehicles on the road. Our road systems can't keep up with the current flow of traffic and the environment will surely suffer.  Besides, there's no place to park!

So, here's a couple of things you can do:

• Participate in MBTA meetings.  Follow this link to learn about the proposed changes and the meeting schedule.   [MBTA Fare Change and Service Guide]
• Learn more about the other issues in your community that are important to you.  We need revenues to maintain healthy communities, healthy people, good schools...(you insert what's important to your community)  Check out the Campaign for Our Communities. and then join the campaign!

Remember, the government is us!

Its time for a paradigm shift in the economic, fiscal and tax policies of our country.  We can't cut our way out of the Recession...austerity didn't work for the English the first time and it's not working for them now nor with the countries in fiscal crises in the Euro Zone.  Will the Administration and our legislators have the courage and political will to face down the corporations and the wealthy to help the low income and middle class survive and thrive, to the benefit of the entire country?  Let's hope so.  Let's continue with our advocacy efforts to make this a reality.

As stated in The New York Times editorial, The challenge for Mr. Obama is to translate the plight of the middle class into an agenda for broad prosperity. Congress’s inability to cleanly extend even emergency measures though 2012 — including the temporary payroll tax cut and federal unemployment benefits — underscores the difficulty. The alternative is continued decline.

More jobs. Fewer foreclosures. Less financial risk. Progressive taxation. Those policies will give the middle class a fighting chance. But the list is not exhaustive. The pillars of a healthy middle class also include public education, Social Security, unions, child care, affirmative action and, not least, campaign finance reform, since inequality is reinforced by the political power of the wealthy.

Income inequality and economic injustice has a adverse affect on the economic development and financial stability of the US.  Even more disconcerting is that many Americans believe that the income/wealth disparity is shrinking in the US.  This attitude does not bode well for the advocates who organize for change.  The challenge is combat the pervasive cognitive dissonance.

A Gallup poll released on Thursday found that, after rising rather steadily for the past two decades, the percentage of Americans who said that the country is divided into “haves” and “have-nots” took the largest drop since the question was asked....Nearly 6 in 10 Americans still see themselves as the haves, while only about a third see themselves as the have-nots. The numbers have been in that range for a decade.

As Charles M. Blow laments in his Op-Ed, This is the new American delusion. The facts point to a very different reality...Our growing income inequality is a fact. So is the possibility that it could prove economically disastrous.

The Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation issued its latest report on the state of municipal budgets [Full Article: The Boston Globe].  There are no real surprises...that is if you have been paying attention to the economy, discussions in the State House regarding revenues and budget cuts, and watching your own city or town lose employees.  The surprises may be the magnitude of the unfunded pension and health funds that were measurable and promised as part of employment...that's unconscionable.

Our families and our communities need investments in the services, schools, and infrastructure that make Massachusetts a great place to live and work.  How will this happen?  In order to make the necessary investments, we need to raise significant revenues.  Governor Cuomo in New York has taken the lead, as has Governor Brown in California...That revenue should come primarily from the highest income earners.

“The numbers demonstrate just how difficult this recession and fiscal crisis have been for cities and towns,’’ said Michael J. Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation. “Their revenues have been virtually flat, while their costs have grown, which has meant cuts in schools, public safety, and other basic services for most cities and towns.’’

“These are challenging times,’’ said Michael V. O’Brien, the Worcester city manager. “The global economy, the national economy, and the regional economy have all suffered in the downturn, so the revenues aren’t there for the state to distribute.’’

Here's a picture of the diversity at Occupy Boston:

Half of the Occupy Boston protesters surveyed said they are unemployed, and two-thirds of the jobless said they have not had work for more than one year. Several said they were underemployed, or working several jobs.

Three out of every four surveyed were men. Slightly more than half of those surveyed said they were from outside of Boston. While half of the protesters said they are younger than 30, the age range of people interviewed Monday varied from 18 to 81.

Despite the diversity in the population, the general message is shared...economic inequality in the lives of our people and the country is unacceptable.  The Boston Globe

There's somethin' happening here.  What it is ain't exactly clear.... But I'm glad that folks are waking up to and speaking out against the economic injustice in this country.

Protests showcasing anger with Wall Street and wealthy interests began weeks ago with the original Occupy Wall Street protest, and have since spread to cities around the country, including Boston and Hartford. Over the weekend, they spread to cities outside the United States.  [Full Article and Video: 22 News]

Paul Krugman writes - class warfare, says who?  We benefit from participating in this society in which the government is at its center; the wealthy could not have garnered its wealth without being part of this society.  They clearly have benefited greater than the lower and middle class folks.

... big cuts in top income tax rates,...there has been a major shift of taxation away from wealth and toward work: tax rates on corporate profits, capital gains and dividends have all fallen, while the payroll tax — the main tax paid by most workers — has gone up.   According to new estimates by the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, one-fourth of those with incomes of more than $1 million a year pay income and payroll tax of 12.6 percent of their income or less, putting their tax burden below that of many in the middle class.  [Full OpEd: The New York Times]

Want to know how the House voted on the casino gambling bill on September 14, 2011?  Read this...

It’s not often that an elected official supports a measure that effectively strips their constituents of a say on an important issue. But that’s what eight Boston lawmakers did.  [Full Article:  CommonWealth Magazine]

It seems Massachusetts is at the middle of the pack, nationally, when it comes to taxes on casinos.  And, we're on the low end for the Northern states.  Why is the tax revenue aspect of the casino gambling bill not being debated in the House this week?  Is MA leaving money on the table?  What are the true reasons for allowing casino gambling in MA?

[Economic development secretary, Gregory P.]  ]Bialecki said the state must look at casinos primarily for their ability to create jobs and long-term economic development...Tax money has to be a secondary concern, he said, emphasizing the importance of debating the bill outside the pressures of budget season, when the need to plug short-term holes in spending could cloud discussion about economic development.  [Full Article: The Boston Globe]