Issue Position: Taxes

Issue Position

There is no question that taxpayers should expect fair and equitable tax policies. Whether we are addressing taxes on income, sales, or capital gains, it is vital that we avoid increases in taxes unless an effort first has been made to see if spending can be reduced without harming necessary programs.

One of my priorities will be to push for close and careful implementation of the recommendations in the "Report of the Tax Expenditure Commission," issued on April 30, 2012. That report summarizes more than $24 billion in tax expenditures (i.e., exemptions, deductions and credits) that reduce tax revenue collected in the Commonwealth. Rather than continuing these tax breaks indefinitely, we must evaluate them to confirm that they continue to serve important policy objectives.

One concern I have about certain tax credits is the ability for recipients who do not have taxable income to transfer their credits to a company in a completely different industry that was not the intended beneficiary of the tax credit. Thus, the tax break intended to encourage important policy objectives only ends up reducing the state's tax collections, as does the large fee paid to the "broker" who helps transfer the tax credit. This kind of credit transfer and fee arrangement takes valuable tax revenue from our collections, which makes it hard to pay for essential programs and puts pressure on the state to raise other taxes and fees.

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