Comments on: The Single Most Important Law That Tipped the Balance Towards Big Government

By: perlhaqr

perlhaqr — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:01:40 +0000

I wanna know if you can send one of those tax refund IOUs to the DMV or whatever to pay your car registration with.

By: GU

GU — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:03:25 +0000

“One wonders how many states are watching this scheme and gauging voter reaction? Unless the voters make the pols pay with their seats, this tactic could spread over the entire USA.”

California has at least two nationally important cities (L.A. & SF/SV) and unbelievably awesome natural amenities (climate, beaches, mountains, etc). California politicians have a lot more slack than most states’ pols.

By: feeblemind

feeblemind — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:44:25 +0000

One wonders how many states are watching this scheme and gauging voter reaction? Unless the voters make the pols pay with their seats, this tactic could spread over the entire USA.

By: GU

GU — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:50:17 +0000

I should add that the ability to leave a stateâ€”to vote with one’s feetâ€”is the major reason why states have lower tax rates than the federal government. You can leave California for New Hampshire, but its much harder to leave the United States.

By: GU

GU — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:08:40 +0000

I would vote for the Sixteenth Amendment as the most important law in tipping the balance towards big government. The federal income tax was literally held unconstitutional by the Supreme Court prior to Amendment XVI. Tax rates in many states are onerous, but they are nothing compared to federal taxes (at least if you’re in the top 50% of earners).

By: jhc

jhc — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:06:00 +0000

I agree that this is a strong candidate for single-most-important change in favor of Big Gov. I make estimated quarterlies so it’s painfully obvious how deep the gouge is.

And to think Milton Friedman was instrumental in bringing it about (see http://reason.com/archives/1995/06/01/best-of-both-worlds) to finance WW II.

By: SBABG.org

SBABG.org — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:28:11 +0000

I still feel irredentism for parts of CA. Can we in AZ just annex their beaches?

By: Anne Cleveland

Anne Cleveland — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:14:28 +0000

Yes it was the graduated income tax law which passed in 1913,which really started this country on the down-fall to socialism.

Those being paid with tax-dollars, elected and appointed, never seem to run out of devious ways to implement thievery. Despite any ways and means to justify,stealing is stealing, and always wrong.

Anne Cleveland

octogenariansblog.com

By: morganovich

morganovich — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:24:50 +0000

if you make estimated tax payments, california has already been doing this all year.

when i filed my 2008 taxes, i got this interesting surprise – california had altered the ratio for estimated payments. no longer was it 25% per quarter. now it was 30%/30%/20%/20%.

while this is not technically a tax increase in absolute dollars, it does mean that they are getting the return on my interest free loan for longer.

this desperation to get cash flowing in sooner tells you everything you need to know about CA state finances.

and, of course, this whole program is much more ominous from a state that pays refunds late and possibly with nonconvertible IOU’s.

By: Michael

Michael — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 04:37:38 +0000

The state is still using IOUs. These people will get their 10% back sometime next year but there is a very good chance it won’t be in currency.