This from Tom Eblen at Bluegrass & Beyond:
The late Sen. Russell B. Long of Louisiana famously described the politics of tax reform this way: "Don't tax you, don't tax me. Tax that fellow behind the tree."
Kentucky needs real tax reform, because what Long described is the way we have funded government for years.
We have known for more than a decade that Kentucky's tax system is broken, because each year comes with another big deficit. (Government spending has increased, too, but Kentucky's per-capita state and local spending is almost 20 percent less than the national average, according to the Kentucky Long-Term Policy Research Center.)
Economists say annual deficits, even in good times, show that Kentucky needs a tax structure that reflects the modern economy — and one that is fair, equitable, efficient and sufficient to meet the state's needs.
Recent governors and legislatures have settled for a series of politically expedient quick fixes, usually hashed out behind closed doors and pushed quickly through the General Assembly. And they do it knowing that another crisis is just around the corner.
Think this year's $456 million shortfall was bad? State officials say it's nothing compared to what we're likely to see in the next two years......[What legislators] should do is quit looking for quick fixes and easy answers.
Otherwise, they’ll just have to keep dipping into reserve funds, hacking away at vital social services and putting off investments in education and infrastructure that are Kentucky’s only hope for a bright future.
We must get serious about real tax reform. We must create a modern tax system that is fair, equitable, efficient and sufficient. Because even if there is a fellow behind the tree, he’s a Kentuckian.
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