Another tax reform proposal on the horizon

Related News

01/20/10 — Legislator targets public employees for pay cuts in constitutional amendment
01/18/10 — Earnings tax in St. Louis, Kansas City could be challenged in statewide ballot initiative
12/07/09 — N.J. voters to decide ballot question restricting tax dollars
12/05/09 — Two measures for ballot
11/24/09 — Experts Debunk Claim That Tax Measures Would Cost Jobs
More Fiscal/Budget Issues news

Morning Sentinel: Forget the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, the 1 percent tax cap and the failed excise tax cut. Next up is "An Act to Implement Tax Relief and Tax Reform," a new tax policy battle Maine people will likely be asked to consider in the spring.

Since 2003, Mainers have voted six times on proposals -- many of them citizen initiatives -- that promised in one way or another to lower taxes. This time around, Democrats in the Legislature thought they had an answer. Setting aside property taxes, they overhauled the income tax and sales tax to try to rebalance Maine's system.

After intense negotiations with Gov. John Baldacci, they agreed on L.D. 1495. Over the protests of Republicans, they passed the bill and signed it into law. But Republicans fought back, and gathered the signatures necessary for a people's veto.

Democrats have until Tuesday to challenge the signatures. If they don't, or if the challenge fails, voters in June will be asked whether the law should be repealed.

To read more, click here.