MI gov. tough choices, slashes spending and $1.8 billion from business taxes

[The Straight Story]

LANSING -- Gov. Rick Snyder uncorked a radical new budget plan today that he says will stimulate new jobs by slashing $1.8 billion from business taxes statewide and cutting wide swaths through state spending, including money for schools, communities, universities and prisons.

Snyder began an unusual personal appearance at 11 a.m. to unveil the budget before an unusually large gathering of four House and Senate committees that decide spending and tax matters, and an overflow crowd in a Senate office building.

His plan calls for the most far-reaching changes in state taxing and spending in nearly 20 years, affecting virtually every constituency in the state and making good on Snyder’s pledge to shake up the Lansing establishment.

Snyder called it a defining moment, and said his plan will do things that should have been done 30 years ago, and that the state has built up $47 billion in debt -- $4,700 for every person in the state.

http://www.freep.com/article/20110217/NEWS15/110217023/1318/NEWS04/Snyder-proposes-huge-business-tax-spending-cuts-cites-need-tough-decisions-?odyssey=mod|lateststories

[notadmblnd]

1. 47 billion in debt an he can cut taxs for business while at the same time taxing pensions

yeah, that makes sense.

[W_HAMILTON]

2. Here are two links I posted in a thread about NC cutting corporate income taxes

A link to state-by-state unemployment rates:

http://www.bls.gov/web/laus/laumstrk.htm

A link to state-by-state corporate income tax rates:

http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/230.html

I think MI has the second-lowest corporate income tax rates of all states that actually has a corporate income tax. Overall, it looks like their highest marginal corporate income tax rate is around 7th lowest in the nation.

How much lower can they go? High taxes aren't the problem -- MI already has some of the lowest corporate income taxes in the nation, yet is 48th in unemployment.

[mrcheerful]

3. John Engler II, wonder how long before the nit wits learn that the worker paying higher

taxes so businesses get tax breaks will not produce more jobs. Where did this ideal come from anyhow? Business has to either sell a product or service or produce products to sell and if people can't afford to pay for what the business sells then that means less profits which lead to less employment. Why are these things so hard for nit wits to grasp?

[Motown_Johnny]

4. it is the race to the bottom mentality

They want businesses to come to their state so they do whatever they can to make their state the cheapest to do business in.

Then other states do the same thing, or do a bit more. Then the first state has to do even more. By the end of it businesses end up getting a free ride on the backs of taxpayers/employees.


Basically it is NAFTA on a state level.