Bobby Jindal
Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal (R) has put forth a radical proposal to completely eliminate corporate and income taxes in his state. Here’s an excerpt of the statement he put out with his proposal:
The bottom line is that for too long, Louisiana’s workers and small businesses have suffered from having a state tax structure that is too complex and that holds back economic prosperity. It’s time to change that so people can keep more of their own money and foster an environment where businesses want to invest and create good-paying jobs.
The local press is reporting that, in order to keep his proposal revenue neutral, Jindal is considering hiking the state sales tax from 4 to 7 percent. That’s a 75 percent increase in a tax primarily paid for by the middle and working class. This would involve a huge shift in taxAi??responsibilitiesAi??from the rich — the state currently has three income tax brackets which require wealthier citizens to pay more — to the rest of Louisiana.
Nice, this means my sales tax will increase to a minimum of 13.25%. I am sure they will make sure to slide in the requirement for Internet sales providers to mandate sales tax collection as well as this is going to drive sales to the Internet. The real looser after the middle class taxpayer will be the local business and government. I will be forced to buy even more online. Even if I am charged state sales tax, I will still save a minimum of 6% which is the local sales tax.
People tout that states without state income tax prosper, they fail to realize that property tax is sky high and is what supports the local government. Louisiana has dirt cheap property tax and most everything is ran off of sales tax collection.