Wide-ranging session kicks off with O'Malley suggesting 1 cent sales tax increase
Even before the Maryland General Assembly convened Wednesday, Gov. Martin O'Malley plunged lawmakers into the issue of tax increases by floating the idea of a penny increase in the sales tax.
In a pre-session radio interview, he said raising the tax from 6 cents on the dollar to 7 cents would close the projected $1.1 billion budget shortfall.
"Frankly, if I had my druthers, I'd rather do the one penny on the sales tax," the Democrat said. "It gives us flexibility - have that address our operating needs and then transition that into the sort of revenue stream that then allows us to do greater bonding capacity for the transportation. That's what I'd like to do."
O'Malley made the remarks during an interview with WEAA-FM's Marc Steiner in Annapolis.
In 2007, at O'Malley's insistence, the General Assembly raised the tax from 5 cents to 6 cents.
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Looks like people near the DE line will be doing a lot more shopping in DE! Raise taxes in the current economical recession? Real smart there pal!
ReplyDeleteYep look at the MD alcohol and tobacco increases - DE has reaped tghe bennies! Dumb MD for doing that - where increase the GAS tax means EVERYONE (not only MDers) pay since EVERYONE uses GAS. Not everyone used alcohol and tobacco products. Disagree totally about an increase in the sales tax because once it increases it seldom decreases. Whereas gasoline cost can/will decrease!
ReplyDeleteBUSHMAN!
Keep voting those officials into office folks!
ReplyDeleteYou're getting what you asked for.
Maryland has always been known to be a high taxation/double taxation state. That's why some of us got out years ago and moved to Delaware.
Demand your state cuts costs before even suggesting another tax increase of ANY kind!