Editorial Response to AZ Republic: Tax breaks versus Tax raids

Tax dollars belong to the people that generate them, not Richard Ruelas or The Arizona Republic. With the exception of an occasional column by Bob Robb, your paper has abandoned its long-standing conservative stands in favor of redistributionism.

How else can you explain your paper’s decision to hire a lobbyist to defeat elimination of a $22.9 million tax break your newspaper enjoys and then have the audacity to criticize my plans to stop tax raids on Arizona businesses and consumers?

For example, in Richard Ruelas’ column (“Pulte tax break: A $4 million bill for the rest of us”), he shows he doesn’t understand the difference between a tax break, such as the one your paper enjoys, and a tax raid on an Arizona business.

Similarly, your newspaper continues to unfairly criticize me for the tax clarification I sponsored for consumers who buy pre-packaged sandwiches. Once again, whether a consumer buys peanut butter, jelly and bread at the grocery store or buys a ready-made sandwich wrapped in plastic on a Styrofoam tray for home consumption, they shouldn’t pay a sales tax. Consumers don’t pay this tax now and shouldn’t be forced to do so in the future. Our state’s tax policy excludes levying a sales tax on food - a policy now clouded by the Governor’s veto of my legislation.

Budget deficits are no justification for allowing state auditors to change rules and squeeze taxpayers. As state revenues have declined, this has happened more frequently as exemplified by these two cases. The Arizona Department of Revenue (DOR), like the IRS, has a voracious appetite for clever and sometimes unfair ways to suck more money out of Arizona taxpayers.

Neither the revenue from the tax raid on Pulte Homes nor the tax increase on consumers in grocery stores was ever counted on in our state budget. To suggest it was, as your paper and columnists have, is wrong. These were tax raids, pure and simple.

If the Arizona Republic and its columnists were truly concerned about tax fairness and our budget shortfall, why not advocate for the elimination of the existing $22.9 million tax exemption enjoyed by the Arizona Republic and other newspapers, but not magazines? We’ve tried to eliminate that big corporate tax break - one that cuts deeply into state revenues every year - but have been unable because your paper hired a pretty good lobbyist.

The Arizona Republic remains curiously and conveniently silent when it comes to tax breaks that serve its own self-interest.

Raiding Arizona taxpayers to balance our budget is not an option. Although some see this as a no-brainer, one should first ask the senior citizen living on a fixed income, or the family attempting to meet its needs in between paychecks, or the young person trying to get ahead in life.

As Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee for the last six years, it’s my job to protect the taxpayer against big government. That’s why I’ve been named a “Friend of the Taxpayer” every year I’ve been in the legislature. Even your paper called me “an expert on state finance and . . . a welcome voice for closing tax exemptions.”

I’ve frequently attempted to eliminate a number of tax exemptions in order to reform our tax code and lower our tax rates overall. Tax reform is in every taxpayer’s best interest, but not in the interest of those, like your newspaper, currently enjoying the handout. If your newspaper has had a change of heart and would like to join me in closing as many tax loopholes as possible, I’m ready to work with you.

But so long as DOR or the IRS attempts to shake down taxpayers, I’ll help those taxpayers fight the bureaucracy. And for tax fairness to occur, someone has to stand up to the government, the lobbyists and the special interests like your newspaper. I’ll continue to fight for the taxpayer no matter how your paper or its columnists may color my efforts.

He represents my district and has tried many times to lower our taxes but to no avail, thanks to demoncrats and some RINO's.

He's really a nice guy, and young too!!

He's probably the only one I know who answers his emails personally.

In the past, I would notify Sen. McCain's office on issues I supported/did not support, and I would receive a letter from him thanking me for contacting his office. Problem is, that what he thanked me for was not what I called about!!

At least Bundgaard listens!

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