Letter | Don’t fall for yet another attempt to further shift tax burden from rich onto the poor
When the income tax was begun in 1929, it was to be a benevolent tax, with the rich paying much more than the poor, akin to the principle, “To whom much is given, much is required.”
Then in the 1950s, South Carolina voted for a sales tax, which was placed on everyone equally according to what they consumed.
The sales tax has increased considerably over the years. Now there is a concerted effort to decrease the percentage of the total tax burden that the wealthy pay by increasing the gasoline tax and decreasing the income tax.
Rep. Tom Rice is touting this method on the federal level and Gov. Nikki Haley is touting it on the state level.
We need to improve our roads. We need to increase taxes. If we increase the gasoline sales tax by half of what they are asking (7 cents per gallon), and leave the income tax as is, that should be sufficient.
Many want the rich to pay less of the tax burden and for the poor to pay more of the burden by increasing the gasoline sales tax. Many want a Fair Tax or flat tax. The purpose of the desired change is to make the poor pay a larger percentage of needed tax revenue.
Our federal and state representatives, and local Horry County Council, are all asking for tax increases for the roads. The citizens are going to be hit with tax increases at all three levels. It is not a time to lower income taxes so that the rich will have to pay less of the burden.
It is time for the poor to learn that the income taxes benefit them and relieves them of higher sales taxes that show no mercy.
The writer lives in Conway.
This story was originally published July 5, 2015 at 9:42 AM with the headline "Letter | Don’t fall for yet another attempt to further shift tax burden from rich onto the poor."