State Rundown 4/20: State Houses Consider Cuts

Legislators in the Pennsylvania House released an alternative to Gov. Tom Wolf’s tax reform plan last Tuesday. The House plan would increase income and sales tax rates to provide significant property tax cuts, as would the governor’s plan. One difference is that the House plan would raise the sales tax rate to 7 percent but leave the base unchanged, while Wolf’s plan would increase the sales tax rate to 6.6 percent and expand the sales tax base. The House plan also would not provide property tax rebates for renters as the governor’s plan would. While the House plan would provide even more funding for property tax cuts, ($4.9 billion vs. $3.9 billion under the governor’s plan) their package is essentially revenue neutral and does not include increased investments in public education which is a signature piece of the governor’s plan. The House Finance Committee is expected to vote on the House plan next week. Stay tuned to the Tax Justice Blog for a more in-depth analysis of tax reform efforts in Pennsylvania.

The Ohio House is set to approve Gov. John Kasich’s proposed tax cuts while nixing his proposals for new tax revenue. Kasich originally proposed $5.7 billion in income tax cuts and $5.2 billion in consumption tax increases over two years– specifically an increase in the sales tax rate from 5.75 percent to 6.25 percent, an expansion of the sales tax base, and increases in the commercial activities tax and severance tax on natural gas extraction. The House is expected to pass a smaller income tax cut and to reject all of the proposed tax increases; whereas the governor wanted to lower the top personal income tax rate to 4.1 percent, the House will likely reduce the rate to just under 5 percent. At the same time legislators blocked the governor’s proposed cuts in public school funding, a welcome but contradictory move.  Stay tuned to the Tax Justice Blog for a more in-depth analysis of tax cutting efforts in Ohio.

The South Carolina House approved a bill by a veto-proof majority that would increase the states gas tax by 10 cents and provide most residents with a modest income tax cut of $48. It is expected to generate $400 million in new revenue for road construction, tax cuts excluded. The margin of passage is important because Gov. Nikki Haley, who vowed not to increase the gas tax without significant income tax cuts, feels that the cuts passed by the House are not enough. The bill also does not contain the Department of Transportation reform measures demanded by Haley, who seeks to assert more control over road funding and construction. The Senate is also considering a road funding plan.

Following Up:
Florida: Senate President Andy Gardiner says the $600 million in tax cuts championed by Gov. Rick Scott and passed by the House last week are “on the shelf” until the fight over Medicaid expansion is resolved. Federal subsidies to Florida for healthcare providers who treat the poor are scheduled to expire, but the governor is resistant to expanding Medicaid coverage under Obamacare to make up for the lost revenue.

In Case You Missed It:

• ITEP released a report on undocumented immigrants’ contributions to state and local tax systems. The report found that undocumented immigrants paid an estimated $11.84 billion in taxes in 2012. Check out this blog post for more!
• In honor of Tax Day, the Tax Justice Blog highlighted the great work done by our state partners around tax issues.