Arizona, Kansas hike sales tax
to save schools
Voters in Arizona — 64 percent of them — and
legislators in Kansas — moving across party lines —
have decided to increase their sales tax one-penny in order
to head off dangerous cuts to their public schools. Many voters
in Wisconsin are asking for the same thing —
"A Penny for Kids" — but more are needed.
Even more important, folks in the Badger State need someone
in State Government to step forward, do the right thing, and
put a sales-tax increase on the legislative agenda.
Voting Tuesday, May 18, 2010, Arizona
approved a temporary sales tax increase, championed by
a Republican Governor, in order to avert sharp cuts in education.
Much like Wisconsin, Arizona is a low sales tax state, so
the increase will only be to 6.6 percent and raise more than
$900 million in the first year alone. Speaking to the voters
of her state, Governor Jan Brewer said, "Doing the right
thing almost always means doing the hard thing, and today,
you did the hard thing."
Equally conservative Kansas took a different path to the
same outcome. Democratic Governor Mark Parkinson, with help
from a Republican-controlled Legislature, raised the sales
tax from 5.3 to 6.3 percent "to avoid cuts in aid to
public schools, according to an article in
The Wichita Eagle. The increase, the largest
in state history, will raise $314 million during the next
fiscal year. Topeka Democrat and Senate Minority Leader Anthony
Hensley said, "It really was about protecting what we
have."
Thousands of voters in Wisconsin have already signed up for
a small increase in the sales tax ("A
Penny for Kids") to keep our schools strong. We need
many more people to sign, however. If you haven't,
do
it now. Then, pass it along (http://www.apennyforkids.org)
to your neighbors, friends, and co-workers. This is too important
to ignore.
Read more about WAES
reaction to the Arizona referendum
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