Letters to the Editor - Anderson: ‘Yes’ on IM 28
In recent weeks, the Brandon Valley Journal (BVJ) has published articles of tax, legislative and political nature. I have noticed that those who oppose IM28 just so happen to be the administrators, managers and legislators presently serving in various public offices at the city, county and state level. South Dakota (SD) voters often refer to these public officials as “bureaucrats”. These officials work in the “service industry” in the state, they do not produce anything tangible. All tangible items come from the earth resources such as air, water and soil elements.
Governments at all levels, “the service industry”, use as its source of income an item called “tax revenue”. This revenue procurement is structured so that failure to pay your eligible taxes on an annual basis would place you in violation of tax law. Tax revenue is a guaranteed annual government income for salaries, employee benefits, utilities, facility maintenance and all operation supplies. Budgeting for the taxpayer is totaling all sources of income and deducting their total expenses, the remaining balance, if any, is discretionary income. Among the personal expenses is the paid annual tax liability.
Government offices and officials also budget. The budget values known are the required payment obligations met and paid in the past operational year. The future income is a projection of tax revenue; “paper tax gains”, the tax payers and businesses required annual taxes. Government officials do not expect you, the taxpayer, to call their past budget projections to be overinflated and to the assume the status quo is fine. Citizens of SD do have the right to question those who develop the government budgets and any changes such as taxable items, and the result is an initiative such as IM 28. Since the public employees, part or all of their income and benefits is sourced from tax revenue, IM 28 may suggest to the bureaucrats that they may have to slow pay increases of their or employee salaries or at least put a cap on new hiring. By adjusting the taxable items, as suggested in IM 28, it brings the SD citizens conscience forward, and if adopted into law would require the budgeting process to be scrutinized more thoroughly than in the recent past. The SD government officials cannot believe the taxpayer would ask the government agencies to make cuts to its budget. Re-read some of the BVJ recent articles to clarify what the bureaucrats think of you and how the local and state institutions and economy would be damaged if they were forced to cut into forward budgets. Asking SD government officials to make financial realistic budgets now will help identify those items that are excessive and not necessary at this time. These items will only move forward on the “would like and to do list”; all of the governments have them.
National statistics approximate that 70% of the United States workforce works for or is closely related to the broad category of “service industry workers”. These are the workers that do not produce tangible goods, mentioned above, but do depend on the rest of society to provide the taxable excess from which their living expenses come from. Be assured the SD legislature will be able to take “paper budget shortages” and blend them into the total operating budget of the state. A side note; everyone has heard of the fellow who claimed he lost a lot of money last week on the stock market. You asked, “well did you sell the stock”, he replies, “No, but I should have”. You inform him that this was only a “paper gain” and he has lost nothing and he will not have a profit until he sells the stock.
Any SD citizen taxpayer or government official that would like to increase their favorite government agency budget should forward your contribution to the State, County of City office this tax year. Please contact BVJ so the public can be informed of your above and beyond tax donation.
Oh, by the way, the bureaucrats did explain to the public the impact of “inflation” on taxes while asking for no adjustment in the annual tax revenue calculation? Recall about three years past when you purchased a basket of goods for $100.00; at 6.2% on that total was added the tax of $6.20. Now the public, and the bureaucrats all have to pay $7.75 of taxes on the same basket of goods now priced at $125. While you and I are fixated to the higher price of an item, the reality of inflation on tax revenue does not take place until you’re paying for the items in your basket. The bureaucrats do not want to discuss the hidden cost of inflation and taxes. The past three years tax revenue has increased and the government entities now have more tax revenue per purchased item than any time in SD history.
BVJ reader, do you seriously believe that the school systems would be “shorted” annual revenue? Would older citizens of nursing homes be turned out or not cared for with Medicare/Medicaid? Writers of previous articles on the IM28 subject would like to make you believe that is so. Who are the “emotional ones” now?
Be assured that the State Legislature can be called upon to further define what is a “consumable non-taxable human item; contact them. It is time to give all the agency administrators and legislators something to consider rather than complain about. VOTE YES IM 28!
Perry Anderson, Brandon
