sales tax
Blue and red states slash taxes despite warnings of hard times ahead
With a $750 million budget surplus on hand, there was little doubt whether North Dakota lawmakers would cut taxes earlier this year — the question was how much. “The surplus was strong, and we believe it’s going to be sustained into the future,” said state Rep. Craig Headland. “So, it just made sense to cut […]
State budget has plenty of surprises, including lots of earmarks and lower raises than state employees wanted
Developing a state spending plan in secret, North Carolina Republicans used most of the state’s water and sewer improvement money for earmarked projects, lifted financial limits for families who want private school vouchers, and helped subsidize hog industry biogas plans. Republicans released their $27.9 billion budget late Tuesday afternoon and plan to have it pass both House and Senate by the end of the week.
New bill would provide schools with free feminine hygiene products, exempt them from state sales tax
A new bill would exempt sales tax on feminine hygiene products and make them free in public schools through a recurring grant program, Rep. Julie von Haefen, the primary bill sponsor said Tuesday. At a press conference at the General Assembly, students and legislators explained how the measure could help families afford feminine hygiene products, […]
Budget & Tax Center: A costly cover for more business tax cuts in N.C.
In the same session that North Carolina senators approved a proposal to cut taxes for high net worth companies, lawmakers have also passed legislation increasing the standard deduction. The stated reasons for doing so is that it will reduce taxes for everyday North Carolinians by increasing the threshold of income upon which the low flat […]
At the legislature: One step forward after three steps back in funding local government
Wednesday, members of the House Finance committee voted in favor of House Bill 900 (HB900), which allows North Carolina cities and towns to increase their local sales tax by a quarter cent. This local sales tax increase would have to be approved by a majority of local residents via a local referendum. The proposal is […]
Amazon and other merchants could get a big tax break from House budget
A provision way down on page 351 of the House Budget could deliver big tax breaks to distribution companies like Amazon. It is difficult to say how many companies this provision would benefit, or how much revenue state and local governments stand to lose, but these types of special tax deals often cost more and […]
NC Senate proposal would expand the sales tax
Correction, posted May 19: The Budget and Tax Center highlighted below how a proposed bill – Senate Bill 628 – considered and discussed by the Senate Finance this week would make landscaping services and services for driveways and parking lots subject to sales tax as part of clarifications of the sales tax base broadening that […]
More “clarity” adds to tax shift taking place in North Carolina
North Carolinians are paying more in sales taxes than they did a few years ago. Lower income North Carolinians continue to pay a larger share of their income in state and local taxes compared to the wealthy. This is a result of state leaders’ deliberate efforts to create a state tax system that relies much […]
Latest sales tax expansion highlights need for state EITC
Today North Carolinians will begin paying sales tax on various installation, repair and maintenance services on everything from appliances to musical instruments to vehicles. This modest expansion of the sales tax base was included in the state budget passed by state lawmakers last year and represents another step towards aligning the state’s tax code with […]
Editorial: Further shift onto sales tax is a bad move for NC
In their never ending quest to tilt it more and more in favor of themselves and their wealthy backers, state lawmakers are again touting a plan to shift North Carolina’s tax system away from income taxes and further onto the sales tax. As Raleigh’s News & Observer reported in this article, the move was endorsed […]
More flaws revealed in state’s hasty, back-of-the-envelope tax policy changes
The latest issue of the Justice Center’s Prosperity Watch is out and it explains some big practical problems that have become apparent in the new sales tax distribution changes that became law with the FY2016-17 state budget. As economist Patrick McHugh explains: “The new allocation system does not target the states’ areas of most dire […]
Budget uses new method to shift local sales tax revenues around, to much the same effect as previous proposals
A provision in the budget will, if enacted, will change the way sales tax is distributed. The budget creates a new pot of $84.8 million to be distributed to county and municipal governments for economic development, public education, and community college purposes. Similar Senate proposals earlier this session met a frosty reception in the House […]