Governor “My Hands are Tied” Carney sticks with Markell’s Budget Rec’s
He toured the state and had coffee klatch after coffee klatch, but (true to form) in the end, there was only one coffee klatch that mattered. Carney’s “shared sacrifice” budget largely parrots the budget fixes left to him by Jack Markell.
Carney:
Carney proposed a hike in personal income tax for all earners. Those making over $60,000 annually would be taxed at a 6.8 percent rate, compared to the current 6.6 percent. Those annually making less than that would see a hike between 0.2 and 0.4 percent.
Markell:
Top personal income tax rate increases from 6.6 percent to 6.8 percent, at $60,000. Raises $9.9 million.
Carney:
The cigarette tax would also rise by a full dollar, from $1.60 to $2.60, lifting Delaware’s price-per-pack slightly higher than Maryland’s, while remaining lower than Pennsylvania and New Jersey. His proposal would also double the tax on moist snuff and e-cigarettes.
Markell:
Cigarette tax increases from $1.60 a pack to $2.60 a pack. Raises $18.6 million.
Carney:
…raise the corporate franchise tax... Fortune 500 companies would now have to pay $250,000 annually–$70,000 more than their current rate, which has been untouched for eight years. Mid-size companies would see a $20,000 rise in their corporate franchise tax, taking it from $180,000 to $200,000.
Markell:
Corporate Franchise Tax: raised to match inflation, with a new top rate — $250,000 for companies with $750 million or more in revenues or assets.
No new tax bracket. No new thinking.
Yep. Those that got ALL of the benefits of the so-called recovery will only have their income taxes rise by the same amount as those earning $60 K a year.
Somewhere, the Chamber is polishing up a new award for Jellyfish John. He’s their kinda governor.
60K for a family starting these days is barely middle class.
Actually 60K is about the median household income in Delaware.
Republicans will not vote for the new taxes. This gives tremendous leverage to progressives. I’m calling on our progressive legislators to withhold their votes for the budget unless one or more new top brackets is added.
Here’s the presentation from the Governor’s office (PDF):
http://budget.delaware.gov/budget/fy2018/documents/budget-reset-presentation.pdf
Carney:
Effective January 1, 2018, Carney is seeking to eliminate itemized deductions on state tax returns; in exchange, he would up standardized deductions dramatically. For single filers, the standard deduction would rise from $3,250 to $5,000. For married couples, it rises from $6,500 to $10,000.
Markell:
Itemized deductions on personal income tax would be completely eliminated, but the standard deduction would be increased 50 percent. Raises $18.1 million.
Those annually making less than ($60,000) would see a hike between 0.2 and 0.4 percent.
Carney’s budget raises taxes more on the the middle classes and down than it does on people making $60,000 and up. The only place where this budget is even remotely progressive is in Bizarro World. Bonini was more progressive – at least he would have legalized pot, which would bring in more revenue than taxing the poor.
It boils down to this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrDSqODtEFM
Are the sub 60k tax hikes 0.2 to 0.4 percent or 0.2 to 0.4 percentage points?
You really belong in California. This budget will never pass with them eliminating itemized deductions or giving our shitty public schools the freedom of raising school taxes without voter approval.
Republicans will not vote for the new taxes. This gives tremendous leverage to progressives. I’m calling on our progressive legislators to withhold their votes for the budget unless one or more new top brackets is added.