The state of Massachusetts, of all places, looks poised to place a "Small Government Act" on their ballots this November, according to today’s WSJ.
"The Small Government Act would repeal the 5.3% income and wage tax, as well as the state capital gains tax, which reaches as high as 12%. The ballot initiative would replace the $12.5 billion in taxes with . . . nothing."
A complete pipe dream? Maybe not:
"The referendum may seem the longest of long shots in a state represented by some of Congress’s biggest spenders. But the same initiative was on the ballot in 2002, and though the political establishment roared with laughter through Election Day, the measure got 45% of the vote."
But people in Massachusetts have already been voting with their feet on the tax issue for years.
"Over the past decade 330,000 Massachusetts residents have packed U-Haul trailers and left — more than have even fled Michigan — and many have gone to no-income-tax New Hampshire."
Of course, legislators, bureaucrats and rent-seekers will scream about the horrors of "losing" so much revenue from state coffers. But this would force the lawmakers to do what they were actually elected to do – prioritize the spending of tax dollars.
But here’s the kicker: state tax collections as a percentage of personal income are HIGHER in North Carolina than they are in Massachusetts. (and New York and Connecticut, for that matter) (FY2005)
Where is North Carolina’s "Small Government Act"?
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