We love a fun fact, so here are a few fun facts to start off your day! First, did you know that Louisiana (asaforementioned) is home to the highest infant mortality rate, the fifth-highest maternal mortality rate, the fourth-worst life expectancy rate, the fifth-highest violent crime rate, the second-highest poverty rate, and the fifth-highest obesity rate in the country? Did you also know it is probably also home to one of the biggest rates of unedumacatedness too, given that there is little or no public education going on and definitely nothing to do with "science" in what passes for most Louisiana "schools"?
But that is OK, because -- and here is fun fact number three or six or something -- having taken a long hard look at these problems, Governor Bobby Jindal has concluded that the solution to these current woes is to outlaw all abortionsban gay marriagebuy pizza for all Republicans cut all income taxes, and this will lead to prosperity for everyone for ever! Except!
There is only one snag in this brilliant plan, and it is the people of Louisiana and their socialist commie craving for "functioning government," but that's fine, Bobby thinks he has a way around that: he'll just ask the legislature to pass the plan that the people don't want. Voilá, problem solved!
Louisiana lawmakers on Tuesday questioned the wisdom of eliminating the state's income tax without raising sales taxes, one day after Governor Bobby Jindal said he would delay his plan to scrap the income tax. Jindal, a possible 2016 Republican presidential candidate, shelved his package on the two-month legislative session's opening day on Monday, acknowledging that widespread public discomfort doomed its chances. Instead [Jindal] called on lawmakers to pass their own plan and "send me a bill to get rid of these taxes."His plan would have eliminated all state personal and corporate income taxes. It also called for a 56 percent increase in the state sales tax, a much higher cigarette tax, and the elimination of some tax loopholes to make up the $3 billion shortfall from abolishing the income taxes.
This 56% increase in sales tax, which would raise taxes as high as 11% in some cities, is no biggie for anyone but Poors, but did we mention that it primarily only negatively impacts Poors, so who cares? Also too, given that "public discomfort" is what led to Jindal scrapping the tax plan, the best way to proceed isn't to, say, LISTEN to the people of Louisiana and decide to scrap the plan; the best way to proceed is actually to have the legislature try to pass a plan similar to the one that the people rejected. This is how democracy is DONE in Louisiana, apparently.
At a Senate hearing, Republican Senator Robert Adley asked Department of Revenue Executive Counsel Tim Barfield whether an income tax repeal would still need to be revenue-neutral to pass muster with the governor."I think that would be the ultimate desire," Barfield said. "But I think if you look at a long-term phase-out of that (income tax), I think you have a lot more leeway."
Jindal's package, designed to make Louisiana more competitive with nearby income tax-free states such as Florida and Texas, would have seen the sales tax top 11 percent in some localities, the highest in the nation, when combined with local taxes.
Yeah, no need to make it fiscally responsible or anything; just more like Texas and Florida (models surely worth emulating) and everything will be fine.
