Posted on 04/19/2005 12:03:47 PM PDT by truth49
OLYMPIA—Not withstanding the current tax debate, tomorrow Washingtonians will finally reach their Tax Freedom Day for 2005. This means that from January 1 to April 20 (110 days), taxpayers in Washington have been working to pay their combined federal, state and local tax obligations. Tax Freedom Day for 2004 arrived on April 18, meaning Washingtonians had to work an additional two days this year to pay their taxes. The national average for Tax Freedom Day arrived on April 17, three days earlier than in Washington this year.
Each year the Tax Foundation calculates the date by which taxpayers will finally have worked long enough to pay their tax burden. According to the Tax Foundation: “Tax Freedom Day is calculated by dividing the official government tally of all taxes collected in each year by the official government tally of all income earned in each year.”
Washington’s combined tax burden earned the state a ranking of eighth highest nationally. When considering only state and local taxes, Washington scored 24th highest. This earned Washington the dubious distinction of having the highest state and local tax burden in the Northwest (Idaho ranked 27th and Oregon ranked 36th).
“State Democrats apparently don’t believe working 110 days to pay for our tax burden is sufficient,” said Jason Mercier, budget analyst for the Evergreen Freedom Foundation. “Since they gutted the voter-approved spending limit so they could raise taxes unchecked, we’ll be working even longer to pay taxes next year.”
Yesterday Governor Christine Gregoire signed a bill amending the voter-approved I-601 spending limit. The bill removes the 2/3 vote requirement for the legislature to raise taxes during the 2005-07 biennium and redefines the spending limit growth factor to allow state spending to grow at a faster pace than previously authorized.
Though April 20 is Tax Freedom Day, Washingtonians are still working to pay for the total cost of government. Cost of Government Day will not be reached until sometime in July. Cost of Government Day (COGD), as calculated annually by Americans for Tax Reform (ATR), is defined by ATR as “the date of the calendar year on which the average American worker has earned enough gross income to pay off his or her share of spending and regulatory burdens imposed by all levels of government, federal, state and local.”
Perfect Hitler's Birthday
How about calling it 'end of slavery to geovernment day'?
We the People need to pass an Initiative 602 like the scrapped 601 by Fraudoire & her demoncRAT cronies presently inhabiting & controlling the legislature so we can reimpose our will on the crazy tax-and-spend demoncRATS running the show in Olympia.
LOL..
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