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State Representative Ryan Winkler
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-7026
For more information contact: Matt Swenson 651-297-8406
Column/LTE
ACKNOWLEDGE THE TRUTH ABOUT TAXES AT TODAY’S TEA PARTIES
Anti-tax groups are staging demonstrations in communities around Minnesota today in protest of the growing tax burdens on Minnesota families. As taxpaying citizens these Minnesotans have every right to hold government accountable for an unfair, unbalanced tax system – and they have every reason to be angry.
For decades Republicans have told Minnesotans cutting taxes is the key to economic prosperity. Time and again we were told taxes were choking our economy and stifling job creation in Minnesota. So Minnesotans elected Republicans, and Republicans cut taxes. President Bush, Governor Pawlenty, and their Republican allies in Congress and the legislature slashed taxes at historic levels, giving billions in tax breaks to millionaires and corporations that ship jobs overseas.
Now, after 8 years of George Bush and Tim Pawlenty tax cuts, what does Minnesota have to show for it? The longest and deepest economic recession since World War II, skyrocketing unemployment, and over a quarter million Minnesotans out-of-work. The Republican promise of economic prosperity through trickle-down tax breaks is once again proven false by a devastating economic crisis. Minnesotans now know that promise for what it is: an irresponsible, empty campaign slogan rather than a thoughtful policy for economic growth.
Today Minnesota’s tax system is more unfair than ever. A decade of tax cuts for the wealthy and a “no new taxes" mantra ruling the Governor’s Office has saddled Minnesota’s middle-class with a heavy, regressive tax burden. In fact, last month the Minnesota Department of Revenue issued its 2009 Tax Incidence Study showing Minnesota’s middle- and low-income earners are paying a much greater share of their income in state and local taxes than the state’s highest earners. Those households earning $113,000 or less pay roughly 12.3 percent of their income in taxes while those earning $447,000 or more pay just 8.8 percent.
If you think there’s something wrong with this picture, you’re right. The same Republican politicians who told working Minnesotans they were fighting to put more money in your pocket were telling a blatant lie. Since Democrats took control of the Legislature in 2006, we’ve passed bill after bill to provide permanent tax relief for Minnesota’s middle-class and put the balance back in our tax system. Every time Governor Pawlenty has vetoed those proposals, smiled at the camera, and told Minnesotans it was for their own good.
We used to have a responsible tax system in this state that worked for Minnesotans. Everyone paid their fair share according to what they could afford in order to preserve Minnesota’s quality of life, send our kids to nation-leading schools, and take care of the sick and elderly in our communities. Now our tax system has tipped to favor the wealthy and burden working families. It’s time for a change.
President Obama and Democrats in Congress showed they understand the power of fair taxes for the middle class by passing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. After more than a decade of Republican control, Democrats answered the promise to put more money in the hands of working people through real, targeted tax cuts for the middle-class. The Making Work Pay tax credit went into effect April 1, giving 95% of working families earning $150,000 or less over $55 billion in tax relief this year alone. ARRA gave first-time homebuyers $8,000 tax credits to help restore and repair their new homes. It gave a $1,500 tax credit for installing more energy-efficient windows that will save families money on expensive heating bills – an initiative that has already put 150 Minnesota employees back to work at Andersen Windows.
These smart, targeted tax policies are beginning to tip the balance back in favor of the country’s middle-class, and put America on the path to economic recovery. They are the kind of tax policies Minnesota needs to implement in order to turn our economy around quickly, put Minnesotans to work, and ensure a more prosperous future for our state.
In the coming weeks, Democrats in the Minnesota Legislature will be voting on some of the most significant tax reforms in 20 years. House Democrats plan to make the state’s tax system more progressive, eliminate dozens of unbalanced tax breaks for special interests, and eliminate ineffective tax expenditures and other items the state can no longer afford. Putting the balance back in our tax system is not only the right thing to do, it’s the only way to rebuild our economy and maintain the kind of Minnesota we can be proud to pass on to our children.
But state lawmakers can’t do that alone. Facing the impasse of an unwilling governor, we’re looking at an uphill battle. We need the support of all Minnesotans in the effort to reform our tax system. I encourage every Minnesota citizen to be as vigilant in their cries for tax reform throughout the rest of the legislative session as they were today. Together, we can reform our tax system once and for all, and put Minnesota on the path to economic recovery.
News Items
- Statement on Budget Forecast - (Posted: 2012-12-05 00:00:00)
- Statement on Final I-35 W Bridge Settlement - (Posted: 2012-11-13 00:00:00)
- Rep. Winkler: Tea Party Activists Can’t Be Trusted to Reform Our Elections - (Posted: 2012-11-01 00:00:00)
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