Ballot Question 3: Government Spending Needs To Be Cut
More than 94,000 Massachusetts workers lost their jobs in 2009. But what did the Massachusetts Legislature do? It raised state government spending by $4 billion, and raised the sales tax from 5 percent to 6.25 percent.
The result of that increase? More Massachusetts businesses were driven out of state — or shuttered. More employees were laid off. More underemployed workers lost work hours, lost clients, took lower-paying jobs and suffered pay cuts.
We must roll back taxes and cut government spending to breathe life into small businesses— and create jobs.
Voting YES on Question 3 will:
• Create 33,000 new private-sector jobs (based on metrics of May 2009 Beacon Hill Institute study).
• Give back more than $900 on average — every year — to every family in Massachusetts.
• Force state politicians to cut government waste.
• Keep shoppers in Massachusetts instead of driving them to New Hampshire where there is no sales tax.
• Attract shoppers from Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont and New York.
Massachusetts families have been forced to cut their spending by 20 to 30 percent or more over the last two years.
A Yes on Question 3 will cut total state government spending less than 5 percent. Just $2.3 billion out of $52 billion spent in the last fiscal year. It doesn’t even touch the additional $22 billion spent by cities and towns.
Ballot Initiatives: A Powerful Tool
In 2000, the income tax rate was 5.95 percent. It’s now 5.3 percent because of a successful ballot initiative launched by Republican Gov. Paul Cellucci in 2000. It has saved taxpayers $7 billion so far.
In 1998, the income tax rate on interest and dividends was 12 percent. It’s now 5.3 percent because of another successful ballot initiative. That saved taxpayers an additional $5.7 billion.
Together, these two ballot initiatives have saved taxpayers a whopping $12.7 billion — an average of $5,000 per family.
Ballot initiatives work. Without Yes on Question 3, the sales tax will stay at 6.25 percent. The income tax will stay at 5.3 percent.
Yes on 3 will force the Legislature to cut government waste. That’s why teachers’ unions will spend millions of dollars trying to defeat Question 3. But don’t buy the lies.
Remember in 2008 when the teachers’ unions funded an advertising campaign that said “Vote No” on ending the income tax or else we’ll have to raise other taxes? A majority of voters, fearing higher taxes, responded by voting no.
What did the Legislature do the next year? They raised the sales tax — and five other taxes. Every time there’s a tax cut on the table, government unions claim: “Vote no — or else we’ll have to cut police, fire, schools and roads.” They claim they must cut local services. That’s a lie. We’re rolling back state spending. They claim they can’t find 5 percent waste from $52 billion in total state spending. Most voters believe 41 percent of state spending is waste — eight times more than this modest tax rollback.
How much has your family had to cut spending in this recession? Don’t buy the lies from special interests who want to keep your taxes high. Vote Yes on 3 Nov. 2. n
Carla Howell is the chair of the Alliance to Roll Back Taxes. For more information, go to www.rollbacktaxes.com.
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