SC

Hey SC: Tax Rates Matter

YET ANOTHER REPORT LINKS INCOME TAX RELIEF TO ECONOMIC GROWTH Rather than build a competitive climate that promotes job growth, income growth and expanding consumerism, South Carolina’s leaders have opted instead to spend increasing sums of money on taxpayer-funded incentives – which are basically bribes paid to companies in exchange…

YET ANOTHER REPORT LINKS INCOME TAX RELIEF TO ECONOMIC GROWTH

Rather than build a competitive climate that promotes job growth, income growth and expanding consumerism, South Carolina’s leaders have opted instead to spend increasing sums of money on taxpayer-funded incentives – which are basically bribes paid to companies in exchange for locating here.  In fact the Palmetto State’s investment in “targeted tax credits” has soared from $34 million annually in 1998 to more than $1 billion a year in 2010.

Does this policy work?

Of course not … in fact there’s a whole lost decade’s worth of data to prove it.

These bribes don’t work because they shift the state’s tax burden – and they are notoriously secretive, which is a recipe for disaster in a state as corrupt and secretive as South Carolina.  Unfortunately, our state’s reliance on these giveaways has continued to expand under S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley, who campaigned as a small business backer but has chosen to govern as a crony capitalist instead.

This website has repeated argued that instead of doling out taxpayer-funded incentives, our state’s leaders should instead reduce our top marginal income tax rate – which currently stands at 7 percent (and kicks in as soon as you earn $14,000).

As you can see from the map below, South Carolina has one of the highest tax rates in the nation – and it kicks in at a very low income level (meaning everybody has to pay it).  Effectively, we have the highest income tax rate in the Southeast …

(Click to enlarge)

Anyway, there’s a new study out which capably reinforces the already well-established link between individual income tax relief and economic expansion.

The report – entitled “Taxes Really Do Matter” – was released recently by The Laffer Center for Suppy-Side Economics (a source of libertarian nerd manna).  It reveals that between 2001-2010, population growth in the nine states that do not levy an individual income tax soared by more than 14 percent.  The nine highest-tax states?  They saw population growth of only 5.5 percent.

Meanwhile job growth in the nine “no income tax states” was up by 5.5 percent – compared to minus-1.6 percent in the nine highest tax states.

This stuff is not rocket science.  Cutting individual income tax rates not only helps individual taxpayers (stimulating consumerism), it helps the vast majority of sole proprietors and LLCs that file as individuals (stimulating job growth).

Why on earth can’t South Carolina’s “Republican” governor and its “Republican-controlled” state legislature get that?

Easy: They’re getting reelected by convincing a dumb-as-dirt populace that they’re “creating jobs.”

They’re not … they’re killing our competitiveness.

“There is far too much secretive top-down planning by state government officials – chasing specific companies and industries with taxpayer subsidies – and not nearly enough attention to the underlying business climate,” S.C. Sen. Tom Davis (R-Beaufort) said recently. “Instead of making South Carolina a place where everyone has a fair shot at succeeding, we are favoring the politically well-connected. That’s neither fair nor good policy.”

TAXES REALLY DO MATTER (.pdf)

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23 comments

BigT October 17, 2012 at 4:52 pm

STFU, FITS…

You’ve sat on your Stupid #$$ and bashed Romney…while Obama has TAXED the H#!! out of us (in effect) through astronomical GAS prices, healthcare is up $2,500 a year already…and that will double under Obama-Care…

It costs more to heat your house and feed your family as enegy and food prices have sky-rocketed under Obama….and he has no plan to combat the debacle…

On top of that…so many have lost their jobs…w/ little hope to get another one…

And Dumb@$$es like you sit around telling us there is NO differeence because that’s the ONLY chance to Hide The EFFIN mess you made by putting your lord-god Obama in control of our country…

Nice try…dipS#!*…but go try it on someone else…

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Frank Pytel October 17, 2012 at 5:03 pm

Hey T;

I think the article pretty clearly states that the writer would like to see income tax rates lowered. How is this bad?

Frank Pytel :)

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BigT October 17, 2012 at 5:09 pm

People like FITS have been on their knees in front of Obama (in a very plausibly deniable way) for 4 years….

Not to mention: We gave Sanford and FITS 8 years to make a change. FITS used his position to get a sports car and his boss cared more about Ridin’ dirty on the trail than doing his job…

To come up and act like he’s for lower taxes is laughable…kinda hard to take them seriously as an authority, considering their track record…

You people sucked at Obama…and now you are trying to act like you are above the mess you’ve fostered…

You’d have to be pretty stupid to fall for this (FITS) BULL-$#!*……

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Frank Pytel October 18, 2012 at 7:15 am

T;

I’m not falling for FITS BS. I don’t like the Repulicrats or the Demlicans. I think they are all the scum of the earth. I think all the commie bastards should be placed in the middle of the mighty misora in the middle of the spring thaw.

I’m a little unclear as to what youre trying to accomplish here. You can’t truly believe that Mittenhead is any better than Obutthead. They both want Obamneycare. They both tell you straight to your face that they want to raise taxes. There platforms are as nearly identical as two peas in a pod.

Anyone that has read any of my posts, regardless of how they feel about me personally, can not deny that I am ultra conservative. You, in my opinion, are more interested in simply stirring the hornets nest. Frankly, I think your senseless as well (Common Senseless, that is). I think you post here under both pseudonyms just to make people riled up.

Not once have you given a simple answer to any question that anyone has posted. Just this once. Why is saying lower taxes a bad thing?

I don’t disupute your claim that FITS, and I will also say Pannity, Lib-baugh, Snortz and that stupid toothpick of a woman i can’t remember right now, are all LIBTARDS. The only difference between a Repulicrat and a Demlican is the Republicrat purports to spend all of my money, and yours, on National Defense. The Demlicans want to spend it on everything else.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz :|

Boring T. Answer a simple question. Isn’t that what both R’s and D’s want? Dialog. Or is it like my exwife. Its only reasonable if its the way she wants it?

Have a Great Day!! :)

Frank Pytel

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Thebeachisback October 18, 2012 at 9:04 am

what is wrong with you? If FITS makes you blow a gasket, please stop reading and responding! You are ignorant beyond belief???? I hope you never taught school:)

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Rufus October 17, 2012 at 5:48 pm

“Why do we live blog? Because @nancymace tells us to. Why do we do what Nancy Mace tells us to do? Um … pic.twitter.com/U1shKj75”

Um…because she is a straight-up stand-in for Caligula with the right lighting and for the right price?

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vicupstate October 17, 2012 at 6:00 pm

Effectively, we have the highest income tax rate in the Southeast …

i guess Arkansas and North Carolna are not part of the Southeast anymore?

When you look at the TOTAL tax burden, state and local, SC ranks well below the US average and lower than most SE states.

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sweepin October 17, 2012 at 6:47 pm

Save it vic, you must know by now that “The Founding Editor” is a disciple of Mark Sanfraud, who as we all know, never allowed a fact to get in the way of a twisted statistic.

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The Colonel October 17, 2012 at 6:50 pm

Arkansas isn’t normally considered part of the Southeast and in fact, no region is willing to claim it except under duress.

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gimme my check October 17, 2012 at 6:56 pm

You’re an idiot, colonel.

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The Colonel October 17, 2012 at 7:17 pm

An Arkansan I presume? (Or Arkansawyer if you prefer)

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little rocky from arkansas October 17, 2012 at 9:34 pm

— well, the Clintons came from there.

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The Colonel October 17, 2012 at 9:46 pm

Thus proving my point – the only good things that came out of Arkansas were Sam Walton, Dizzy Dean, Forest Wood, John Grisham and diamonds.

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Okay October 17, 2012 at 7:43 pm

Income tax rates are definitely important, but so are property tax rates, and sales taxes. So where does SC end up there?

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CNSYD October 17, 2012 at 8:39 pm

So there are no income taxes in some states, FL for example. All that means is that revenue is raised by some other means. Some states have no property tax on autos. But renewing your license plate once a year costs plenty. Its the old 6 of 1 or half a dozen of another. Sic Willie believes his readers are too dumb to realize that.

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sweepin October 18, 2012 at 8:32 am

Worse, he thinks corporate decision makers don’t realize it either.

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BigT October 17, 2012 at 8:43 pm

The problem is FITS. Unlike us, he was IN power…given to him by the people…that his master lied to wrest….

He Squandered it…now he is singing the song like he is Clean and innocent, like us…

FITS is like all Crooked politicians…They talk what is popular to empower themselves as leaders..but they are Cowards when the attacks are directed toward them for their ‘would-be’ convictions…

Nothing personal: but FITS is just like those he antagonizes and hates…they are just in power now and he’s not…but they are all the same Failures and liars, as proven by their records….

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GreenvilleLwyr October 18, 2012 at 9:16 am

GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF YOUR ASS.

Will Folks was never in power and never a politician. He was a spokesman whose sole purpose was to BS with the media and filter the shit coming out of Mark Sanford’s mouth. And, apparently, to grant, um, exclusive interviews to the prettiest news ladies.

I never voted for him and never saw his name on a ballot. If you are going to rant and rave and otherwise act like a raving fucking lunatic, at least occasionally get your facts right.

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Smirks October 17, 2012 at 9:48 pm

The brackets should be fixed. You hit the top tax bracket if you make slightly over minimum wage. Of course, by reducing state income tax revenue, you have to raise taxes elsewhere, but if that is also done in a manner that spares the poorer folks, it is probably better.

Taxes can be lowered when spending is responsibly trimmed. Until then, they should be more properly balanced.

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The Colonel October 17, 2012 at 10:52 pm

3% across the board cut to every department and agency would set us aright at the state level.

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Frank Pytel October 18, 2012 at 7:16 am

@ the colonel. More like about 75%

:)

Frank Pytel

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hhuuhh?? October 18, 2012 at 11:21 am

How can you be this naive? Who sends the checks for this regular topic?

These businesses are the ones shaking government down. They don’t care about piddly tax rate when they can get back virtually all of their upfront investment, plus who knows what, in “incentives”. Look at Boeing, virtually the only tax benefits that area is seeing from those incentives comes out of the workers’ pockets.

This is comparable to the illegal immigration issue. If you want to stop illegal immigration, call out and penalize the businesses that employ them. If you want to stop the incentives, go after the businesses doing the shakedown.

Oh, wait, business is our god, we can’t do that.

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Booyah October 19, 2012 at 9:22 pm

Location and culture and demographics and natural resource extraction clearly have nothing to do with job growth…..it’s just “taxes”.

“The only difference between a Repulicrat and a Demlican is the Republicrat purports to spend all of my money, and yours, on National Defense. The Demlicans want to spend it on everything else.”

Abso-fucking-lutely correct!

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2nzBwb5Cea4/T9KJYicYRFI/AAAAAAAARtU/ncNwyxEpAS0/s1600/march_of_tyranny.jpg

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