Bill Temporarily Raising Sales Tax Dies in Comittee

Air Date:02/03/2011

By Jackelyn Severin
 
A bill temporarily raising the sales tax failed to pass the Senate Education Committee. Senate Bill 154 raises the state’s sales tax by half a penny for one year in order maintain education funding.

Republican Senator Tim Begalka of Clear Lake says Senate Bill 154 will raise 75 million dollars in revenue. He says this is well over the amount needed to maintain school funding at last year’s levels. He says the money left over can be used for Medicaid funding.  

Begalka says schools have already cut many programs to be more efficient in their budgets and simply can’t handle a 10 percent reduction in funding. He says schools will have to opt out to survive putting more burden on property tax payers.

"I think landowners, businessmen, are paying more than enough already. In order to be more equitable I believe the sales tax, at least for the current year, would be more fair, equitable way to handle this," says Begalka.

Opponents of the bill say this only delays the state’s financial problems for another year.

The committee killed the bill by a vote of 6 to 1.

Right click to download audio.

Get the Flash Player to see this video.