By: Diane Benjamin
Local Sales Tax in both Bloomington and Normal was raised 1% as of last January 1st.
Do you remember being told that 1/4% would go to the County for Mental Health?
The below is from Book 1 of the 2017 Bloomington budget – page 384 http://www.cityblm.org/index.aspx?page=21&parent=9844
15% disappeared into the bureaucracy since the County is now only getting 10% of the net?
10% of net proceeds equals one-quarter of a percent?
If you spend $100, it will cost you $101 just for the added 1% Sales Tax.
1/4% is earmarked for mental health.
Instead of 25 cents, the County gets a dime?
Has Common Core math taken over?
Here’s the original plan: http://www.cityblm.org/index.aspx?page=618
The tax will raise $9.6 million for Bloomington. (Note to Tari: Money YOU are taking out of the economy)
$2.4 million will go to the County. Gee, $9.6 times 25% = $2.4
Of course the $2.4 million is GROSS, not Net.
David Hales loves to add his fee to every department for Administration.
How much is Net? How much is the City taking for overhead? How much is the County really getting? How much is the City pilfering?
Big difference between 10% and 25%!
Since City Hall reads every story, maybe they can explain.
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Jesus any high schooler knows tax money is SPENT not taken out of the economy.
As for common core math…seriously? All you reveal is how ignorant you are on the subject.
Sent from my iPhone
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Thanks for obviously saying nothing in your latest comment!
You need an econ lesson little Tommy!
Just a couple weeks ago Tari claimed people playing video machines took money out of the economy. So which is it? People spending money the way they want or government making choices ONLY they want? Which one is free market. Or, are you opposed to capitalism? Just admit it dude.
When PEOPLE get to keep their money and exchange it for goods and services they want, the population thrives. When government throws it away on out or town lawyers and downtown hotels the people get stuck with the bill.
Understand yet? I doubt it.
Tom, That’s part of the problem. High Schools don’t offer classes in Economics. There are no longer classes in Civics. Schools don’t teach how to balance a checkbook or the concept of debt, either.
Government hires employees, contractors or vendors who are paid with tax dollars–their income is taxed as well. It is the individual who spends the money, not the Government. If the individual has less to spend as a result of increased taxes, less of their income is available to purchase personal goods and services causing economic stagnation or worse yet, recession.
Studying History also explains the affect of Government on economic development. Continuing one’s education is important.
There seems to be a lack of empirical evidence to suggest tax cuts really end up benefitting the economy in the long run. In the short term they can help but only if people are buying goods. There is a lot of other factors: availability of skilled labor, demand in certain industries, cost of raw materials and resources, consumer perception and spending habits. Growth depends on us ultimately. I remember when the fracking boom happened. It was great in the short term, but the increase in gas increased the supply so the prices went down. While we were enjoying less expensive gas, people were being laid off because operational expenses in such an operation are large.
Bush cut taxes and receipts to the Federal government went up substantially. It happens over and over.
I wouldn’t be too sure. There have been presidents that have accomplished better job growth without cutting taxes for those making over $250k.
To simply suggest that it is a one for one proposition, negates the other factors which influence economic growth. That being said the tax burden can be eased, if as you suggested in the past, that unnessary spending is eliminated or at least reduced. But that is more a slow release pill than a sharp machete since net effect of revenue cuts is hard to predict.
http://www.econdataus.com/taxcuts.html
http://www.businessinsider.com/bush-era-tax-cuts-didnt-fix-economy-2012-12
http://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2012/07/17/the-truth-about-the-bush-tax-cuts-and-job-growth/#233db7e81864
http://www.factandmyth.com/taxes/tax-decreases-do-not-increase-revenue
Well, here is some empirical data. Since my property taxes went up each year during the past few years, plus the added taxes from 2014 and the recent sales tax increased of 1%, my spending has dramatically decreased because I have limited resources. Therefore, the City and State are getting fewer tax dollars from me. And, the local business are not benefiting from my patronage. This scenario will not change for me unless the tax burden is reduced.
One quarter of the 1% sales tax is to go to street and sewer repair and maintenance. Does that mean infrastructure is going to be short-changed as well?
I always thought the County and City used “mental health” to manipulate people into supporting the 1% sales tax increase which makes the entire thing a scam. Read the Pantagraph article about the County Health Department or the County Mental Health Action Plan. The devil is in the details which are hidden from view.
Remember Joni Painter couldn’t figure out that a 1% increase to the sales tax would equal $1 per $100 purchase. She actually thought it was $10. So, is it any wonder the city thinks that 10% of net proceeds equals one-quarter of a percent. To quote Joni, “Where’s a calculator when you need one?”