2 GOP Lawmakers Stress Similarities in Tax Proposals 2005-09-21 Reading Eagle
Sep. 21--State Senate Majority Whip Jeff Piccola and state Rep. Samuel E. Rohrer have different ideas about how to eliminate school property taxes.
But Tuesday night the two Republican lawmakers focused more on what their proposals have in common instead of debating their differences.
Piccola, a Dauphin County Republican and candidate for the GOP gubernatorial nomination, joined Rohrer at a forum on property taxes sponsored by the south region of the Berks Republican Committee.
Roughly 75 people showed up for the forum at Mohnton Memorial Park.
Piccola said a plan he unveiled last month would eliminate school property taxes by expanding the state sales tax to food, clothing and most services.
The plan would lower the 6 percent sales tax to 5.7 percent.
Rohrer's plan also would eliminate school property taxes and expand the sales tax to food, clothing and most services. But he has proposed lowering the tax rate to 5 percent.
A major difference between the plans is that Rohrer calls for tripling the real-estate transfer tax to 3 percent from 1 percent.
And Piccola does not go as far as Rohrer in giving the state control over education spending.
"Property is no longer a measure of wealth," Piccola said. "Everyone owns property. To use that regressive tax on property no longer makes any sense."
Piccola also credited Rohrer for sparking a discussion in the Legislature about using sales-tax revenues to replace the roughly $10 billion generated each year by school property taxes.
"Sam was right in choosing a consumption tax," Piccola said. "At least if you are in the store buying something, we know you have disposable income."
About the only disagreement was on whether Gov. Ed Rendell would sign either bill.
Rendell has expressed a reluctance to tax food and clothing.
And the state Revenue Department has said that Rohrer's plan falls about $4.4 billion short of the $10 billion needed to eliminate property taxes.
"He's (Rendell's) not going to sign that bill if we put it on his desk," Piccola said.
But Rohrer was more optimistic that public support for eliminating school property taxes would leave Rendell with little choice.
"My guess is that there is no way in the world that the governor would veto it," Rohrer said
After the meeting, Rohrer said he's not bothered by Piccola's introducing a tax-swap proposal more than two years after Rohrer introduced his plan.
"The basic concept is the same if you agree we need to eliminate, not reduce, property taxes," Rohrer said.
Mohnton resident Gary A. Lord said after the forum that the differences between the two tax plans is not a big deal.
Lord said he would not mind keeping the sales-tax rate at 6 percent if it meant eliminating property taxes.
"Everybody should contribute to the system, and that's the point of the sales tax," Lord said. "We own our home and have paid off our home free and clear. But you never own your home free and clear if you have to pay property taxes."
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Copyright (c) 2005, Reading Eagle, Pa.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.
Source: http://www.blackenterprise.com/yb/ybopen.asp?section=ybbf&story_id=81949050&ID=blackenterprise
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