Illinois residents have been willing to deal with some pretty steep tax increases. But Gov. Pat Quinn may have gone too far this time: Quinn wants to tax coffee and sweetened tea products in grocery stores in the same manner as soft drinks.
Gov Quinn has also suggested raising taxes and fees on driver’s licenses (double to $20), license plates ($20 increase), hunting and fishing licenses, cigarettes ($1 increase) and tickets to the State Fair (horrors!). He also wants to extend the state’s sales tax to some shampoo and personal hygiene products.
Chicago, the largest city in Illinois, already has one of the most expensive tax structures in the country, with a sales tax of more than 10%. The newest proposals from the Governor – as well as those already in place in Cook County – are already drawing complaints. And the complaints don’t stop at the city line – residents all over the state have been protesting what they consider “nickel and dime” reactions to a massive budget crunch.
Proponents of the various tax and fee increases argue that they have no real alternatives. Without additional increases on fees and sales taxes, they claim that property taxes will face another increase – or worse (we all know what that means: income taxes!).
Ugh. I know that states and municipalities are suffering in this economy. And I know that taxation feels like the fastest, easiest way to increase revenue. My own great city of Philadelphia has been talking up property and sales tax increases, too, to attack a massive deficit. But taxing coffee? Even bottled, that’s just heresy!
In 2007, BlogHer was in Chicago (great location, wonderful city). In 2008, BlogHer was in San Francisco: I made no secret about my disappointment with SF. I had waited, it felt like, eons to make it there and, well, it was no great shakes. Lovely weather, beautiful buildings but crazy expensive as all get out (don’t get me started), overrun with tourists and sadly, a really aggressive and disconcerting panhandling population. I don’t say that last bit lightly, as I live in a major city (Philadelphia) and am fairly well traveled. But this post isn’t about that. It’s about next year.
So now, the powers that be are plotting where to put BlogHer 2009. My answer? Philadelphia. It’s east coast, it’s an airport hub, we have trains, there are lots of great hotels and restaurants to fit all budgets. Yeah, that last part is key: it won’t cost you an arm and a leg. And Philly is friendly to bloggers.
But that’s just me.
If you’re a blogger and you’re thinking about BlogHer for next year, give the poll a whirl. It’s here:
I’d also love to hear your thoughts here on taxgirl!
Chicago has the highest sales tax in the country with its newest sales tax increase and surprisingly, folks aren’t happy about it. So the politicians did what they always did – they argued about it.
And here’s where it gets complicated.
County Board President Todd Stroger had instituted the ordinance that actually raised the tax, beginning July 1. Two ordinances to repeal that ordinance were introduced on Wednesday. Those ordinances were voted down by a vote of 10-7. So, we’re back to square one.
Political maneuvering ruled the day and, of course, lots and lots of bickering about the justification for both the tax and the repeal. But at the end of the day, the campaign against the increase called “Axe the Corruption Tax” fell flat.
The semester before I left for law school, my best friend, Bren, and I packed our stuff into my old Buick Regal (the former family car), affectionately named “Bessie” because she looked like a cow. We were on a mission to examine East Coast law schools that were still on my short list. It was easy enough to noodle up I-95 from Raleigh, NC, with stops in, among other places, Washington, DC (to visit Georgetown) and Philadelphia, PA (to visit Temple). We also had a trip to Atlantic City planned but that’s another post altogether…
The second that we stepped out of the car in Philly, I knew that it would be home. There was so much about the city that I adored – the buildings, the history, the people. I even handed my keys over to an attendant without even noting whether he was really a valet (we didn’t exactly have valet parking in Hampstead, NC).
Bren and I decided to pop into a few stores and “urban up” a little since I had arrived in – not kidding – short denim overalls and Birkenstocks. With my hair in braids and Brooks and Dunn on the radio, I didn’t exactly fit in.
I found a few things that I liked and hustled them over to the counter. When the cashier rang up my order, I was perplexed. It was a few dollars cheaper than I had imagined (and being a math minor, I was usually pretty spot on). The difference? Sales tax.
You see, I hail from the “tax everything” state of North Carolina. In NC, there is sales tax imposed on practically everything, including necessities like food and clothes. In PA, however, there is no sales tax imposed on certain necessities – and clothing fit the bill. For Bren and I, it was the equivalent of an extra discount.
In our case, it was a happy surprise. But many cities and states have used sales tax rates and exemptions as a calculated method of luring shoppers to spend money at their stores rather than somewhere else. In my neighboring state of Delaware, for example, they regularly tout that they are the “home of sales tax free shopping.” Does it work? You bet. Shoppers flock to places like Christiana Mall – particularly in the fall for back to school – looking for sales tax free bargains.
Is that about to change?
Vertex, Inc., recently reported that in the last year, 485 U.S. cities increased their sales tax rate. That included 178 newly imposed city tax rates and 307 straight increases in existing city tax rates. Of course, the news that taxes are going up wouldn’t phase Chicagoans – they are facing the highest sales tax rate in the country.
Of state tax rates, only South Carolina raised its state-wide sales tax rate, from 5.0 percent to 6.0 percent.
What does all of this mean? Sadly, it’s likely part of a trend. As the economy turns sour, cities and states scramble to find revenue. The federal government is in no position to help. This is particularly devastating for metropolitan areas where the federal government has imposed regulations requiring action on the part of municipalities that might not have the funds to comply. Examples include No Child Left Behind legislation and Homeland Security programs – both are federally mandated but largely funded on the state level.
What about where you live? Are you seeing any difference in sales tax rates?
