State of Pennsylvania secondary Archives: on Tax Reform
Bob Casey:
Repeal tax cut on top 1% of earners
Q: President Bush wants his tax cuts to be permanent. What do you say to that?A: The answer is simple when it comes to the top 1%. I said in front of 1200 business leaders in Philly: If there is an opportunity to repeal the tax cut to the top 1%,
I’ll do that. We can’t afford it any longer, in a time of crises in health care, a time of staggering deficits, trade deficit, and national debt. But we can have tax relief for the middle class.
Source: Second 2006 Pennsylvania Senate Debate
Apr 19, 2006
Brendan Boyle:
Billionaires should pay higher tax rates than workers
When elected to Congress, I will fight to: - Close Tax Loopholes--A billionaire hedge fund manager should not pay a lower tax rate than a police officer or a nurse. Yet, under our unfair tax code, this is exactly what happens. We need to reform the
tax code and end this unfair treatment of the middle class & workers.
- Invest in Infrastructure & Transportation--It is time to invest in America again. Our infrastructure is in decay and aging fast. In Washington I will fight to ensure that changes.
We can make smart investments that create good construction jobs and also make sure we have the infrastructure needs to compete in the growing global economy.
- Incentivize Innovation--
A thriving 21st century economy requires great ideas and innovation. We need incentives to make it easier for entrepreneurs to pursue their ideas and spur job growth.
Source: 2014 Pennsylvania House campaign website, VoteBoyle.com
Oct 10, 2014
Doug Mastriano:
Elimination of property tax would benefit the economy
Property tax elimination will lead to benefits in other sectors of our economy. The average tax savings of property tax elimination for all homesteads would have the same effect of annual stimulus checks for a household. Increased consumer spending in
our Commonwealth grows GDP. Businesses flourish and consumer sales increase with more demand. This growth ultimately leads to more annual money into the coffers of the General Assembly's general fund available for education spending.
Source: Pottstown Mercury on 2022 Pennsylvania Gubernatorial race
Feb 4, 2022
Dwight Evans:
No tax-breaks without job creation: enforce with clawbacks
Job creation incentives must be transparent and verifiable so that businesses receiving state incentives or tax breaks for their expansion or relocation can be held to their end of the bargain. If businesses don't meet their job-creation or other
commitments, economic development funds can be recovered through clawbacks. It may seem like common sense, but "clawbacks" have been rarely used in recovering public funds, allowing businesses that don't fulfill the terms of their economic
incentive agreements to keep their public funding with no financial consequences. But communities have stopped looking the other way when companies don't keep their promises, and started taking back tax dollars that did not produce the intended results.
Illinois communities took back funds from 37 companies who did not fulfill their local commitments in 2008, compared to six in 2005.
Source: 2016 Pennsylvania House campaign website DwightEvans.com
Nov 8, 2016
Ed Rendell:
Cut property taxes for regular families
What does it say about us as leaders if we allow families to be driven out of their homes because they can't afford their property taxes? I ask for your help in reducing school property taxes by an average of 30 percent this year.
I say, let's cut these crushing taxes now, and restructure our tax system in ways that make Pennsylvania more attractive to investors, and more equitable to homeowners while restoring vital services that are important to our economic growth.
Source: Budget Address to Pennsylvania General Assembly
Mar 4, 2003
Ed Rendell:
Eliminate 74 exemptions & reduce sales tax from 6% to 4%
We should eliminate the 74 non-essential exemptions to the state sales tax. Under our proposal, there will still be no sales tax imposed on essential items like food, clothing, and prescription drugs. And it preserves sales tax exemption for our
manufacturers and non-profit cultural institutions. But we will eliminate exemptions for professional services like fees for lawyers and accountants.By closing these loopholes, we can broaden the base of the state sales tax and actually reduce it from
6% to 4%. Let me put it another way: my proposal will cut the sales tax statewide for every Pennsylvanian by one-third.
The sales tax today is a testament to the power of lobbyists and special interests. There is little rhyme or reason why we tax some
items or services and wholly exempt others, except that in years past someone lobbied to secure favored treatment for themselves. My proposal calls for the elimination of these loopholes so that everyone pays his or her fair share of the sales tax.
Source: Pennsylvania 2010 State of the State Address
Feb 9, 2010
Everett Stern:
Large companies should pay taxes like smaller businesses
I intend to press for a restructuring of the outsourcing of our manufacturing by introducing a special tax on companies that move more than 15% of their production overseas and a requirement that funds held in offshore accounts be returned.
Large companies should pay taxes just as our smaller and medium size businesses.
Source: 2021 Pennsylvania Senate campaign website EverettStern.com
Jun 20, 2021
Jeff Bartos:
Cut spending and waste, give working families tax breaks
Jeff will cut Washington's spending and eliminate bureaucratic waste. Washington doesn't have a revenue problem, it has a spending and mismanagement problem. Jeff believes that first and foremost,
Washington needs to cut spending, eliminate bureaucratic waste and pass those savings on to working families with tax breaks.
Source: 2022 Pennsylvania Senate campaign website JeffBartos.com
Jul 19, 2021
Ken Krawchuk:
Pledged to veto every tax increase.
Q: Do you support or oppose the statement, "Higher taxes on the wealthy"?
A: Oppose. I've pledged to veto every tax increase.
Source: OnTheIssues interview: 2018 Pennsylvania Governor candidate
May 18, 2018
Joe Gale:
Politicians smother us with money grab after money grab
Just when Montgomery County families and businesses thought it could not get any worse, the Democrat County Commissioners are enacting a 5% property tax increase. Tthere appears to be two sets of rules: one for the people and another for the partisan
politicians and policy wonks who exempt themselves from their own mandates to smother their constituents with money grab after money grab in order to feed their giant egos, subsidize their bloated budgets and bankroll their extravagant spending.
Source: Philly Voice on 2022 Pennsylvania Gubernatorial race
Dec 15, 2020
Josh Shapiro:
We need to lower taxes, close loopholes, increase wages
Shapiro said Pennsylvania's 9.99% corporate net income tax rate -- the second highest in the country -- is too high and "holds businesses back." He didn't specify a preferred rate. "At the same time we have too many loopholes that they take
advantage of," Shapiro said. "We need to lower taxes, close loopholes and simultaneously invest in our workforce by increasing wages."
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer on 2022 Pennsylvania Governor race
Oct 13, 2021
Josh Shapiro:
Eliminate the state cell phone tax, expand property rebates
He'll eliminate the state cell phone tax--specifically, the gross receipt and sales tax on cell phone service. By eliminating this 11% state tax, we can reduce Pennsylvanians' tax burden by $317 million and save folks money on their monthly cell phone
bill. Lastly, Josh will lower household costs by expanding the Property Tax and Rent Rebate program, increasing the maximum rebate to $1,000 and making the program available to over 275,000 more eligible people.
Source: 2022 Pennsylvania Governor campaign website JoshShapiro.org
May 18, 2022
Malcolm Kenyatta:
Require online retailers to collect & remit local sales tax
Two Pennsylvania state representatives are proposing a change to the state's online sales tax law to level the playing field between local businesses and online retailers like Amazon. "Purchases from online retailers that do not collect or remit local
sales tax are detrimental to companies in our areas that employ our local employees, pay our local taxes, and ultimately fuel our local economies," Kenyatta said. "This tax loophole comes at the peril of our commonwealth's most populous counties."
Source: NorthCentralPA.com on 2022 Pennsylvania Senate race
Jul 24, 2020
Mehmet Oz:
I believe in capitalism which means lower taxes, regulations
I believe in capitalism, which means lower taxes and regulations, so people can really compete, and
I respect the Constitution, a brilliantly written document that I think should be honored on the bench, and sometimes isn't. We have free market solutions that work.
Source: FOX News Hannity on 2022 Pennsylvania Senate race
Nov 30, 2021
Pete Buttigieg:
Move from fuel taxes to mileage fees to fund roads
The federal government paid for its share of the road network using proceeds from a federal gas tax. That money was put in a special "trust fund." Congress hasn't raised the per-gallon rates since 1993. Meanwhile, vehicles are becoming more fuel
efficient, meaning people have to buy less gas per mile that their cars travel. The trust fund went broke. When Buttigieg ran for president, he said USDOT should come up with a way to move from fuel taxes to mileage fees.
Source: Pennsylvania Capital-Star on Biden Cabinet
Dec 26, 2020
Tom Corbett:
Tax increases choke growth; tax people less
Tax increases choke growth. Every credible study on the subject has taught us this: the states that have grown the fastest, attracted the most jobs, have stayed out of the way. If you tax less, people will see the point in earning more.
If you regulate more sensibly, businesses will be able to maneuver in the turns of tight economies. The third reason not to increase taxes is pretty simple. The voters said no. We are four months out from the election that sent us here.
Source: 2011 State of the State speech to Pennsylvania legislature
Mar 8, 2011
Tom Corbett:
Tax increases choke growth; tax people less
Tax increases choke growth. Every credible study on the subject has taught us this: the states that have grown the fastest, attracted the most jobs, have stayed out of the way. If you tax less, people will see the point in earning more.
If you regulate more sensibly, businesses will be able to maneuver in the turns of tight economies. The third reason not to increase taxes is pretty simple. The voters said no. We are four months out from the election that sent us here.
It was run on a three part theme: jobs, jobs and jobs. And every time someone was asked about new taxes they gave a three part answer: no, no and no. It's time to connect the dots. So, to the people of Pennsylvania, the taxpayers who sent us here,
I want to say something you haven't heard often enough from this building: We get the picture. It's your money.
Source: 2011 State of the State speech to Pennsylvania legislature
Mar 8, 2011
Tom Wolf:
Shift income tax burden to higher earners
All four Democratic candidates would seek to impose a severance tax on natural gas extraction--though the amounts they would choose differ--and expand the reach of the corporate net income tax by requiring combined reporting.-
McCord: Would seek to repeal the 2-year-old impact fee on natural gas drilling and impose a 10% severance tax on natural gas extraction.
- McGinty: Would seek to impose a "reasonable" severance tax on natural gas extraction.
-
Schwartz: Would seek to impose a 5 percent severance tax on natural gas extraction.
- Wolf: Would seek to impose a 5 percent severance tax on natural gas extraction. Would seek to change Pennsylvania's personal income tax law by excluding
taxation on income below a certain amount and increasing the rate to shift the burden to higher earners. Would seek to lower the corporate net income tax rate.
Source: The Patriot News on 2014 Pennsylvania governor debate
May 10, 2014
Tom Wolf:
Cut property tax; raise sales tax & income tax
My budget reduces the total tax burden on average middle-class homeowners by 13 percent. Overall, my budget will reduce the average homeowner's property taxes by 50 percent, putting more than $1,000 each year in their pockets. This will ease the burden
on low income and middle-class homeowners. And it will bring some much-needed relief to seniors living on fixed incomes, some of whom have been forced to leave homes they have lived in their entire lives because they cannot afford higher property taxes.
In fact, under my plan, many senior citizens will see their property taxes eliminated altogether. My plan raises the personal income tax to 3.7 percent. And it will make up for lost revenue by increasing the sales tax from 6 to 6.6 percent, while
broadening the base to include services that currently are not taxed because special interest groups have lobbied for special exemptions. These changes will allow us to make a historic commitment to our schools.
Source: State of the State address to 2015 Pennsylvania Legislature
Mar 3, 2015
Tom Wolf:
No new taxes: not one dollar; not one penny
Today, I put forth my budget proposal. This proposal asks for no new taxes. Not one dollar. Not one dime. Not one penny. At the same time, this budget proposes to do a number of things aimed at improving the lives of our fellow citizens. The people of
Pennsylvania have made substantial sacrifices in recent years to help our state get up off the mat--and despite a budget that asks for no new taxes, we now have a chance to continue making some important new investments on their behalf.
Source: 2019 State of the State address to Pennsylvania legislature
Feb 5, 2019
Tom Wolf:
Tax cuts for working families earning less than $84,000
We're going to stop asking working families to pay the same tax rate my family does. I want to help working families get ahead by reducing their taxes. If you could go back in time and give your younger self just a little bit more help, wouldn't
you do it? And that's exactly what I'm proposing we do for young families across our Commonwealth. If you're married with two kids, and you earn less than $84,000 a year, I suggest we give you a tax cut.
Source: 2021 State of the State Address to Pennsylvania legislature
Feb 3, 2021
Val Arkoosh:
Corporations, wealthy must pay their share
For too long, working families have shouldered the burden of an unfair tax system, made worse by the 2017 GOP tax bill. We need to level the playing field by asking corporations and the wealthy to pay their share
and lift up families through permanent expansions of the child tax credit and earned income tax credit included in the American Rescue Plan.
Source: 2022 Pennsylvania Senate campaign website ValArkoosh.com
Dec 19, 2021
William McSwain:
Lower tax burden on working families; cut red tape
It's been a rough seven years for the pocketbooks of Pennsylvania families. Already rated one of the worst business climates in the U.S., we live under a Governor who, at every opportunity, has repeatedly raised the specter of massive tax increases on
income and energy. As if all of this weren't enough, as a result of Tom Wolf's rule-by-executive-order approach to governing during the pandemic, 1.5 years of crippling lockdowns have shuttered once thriving small businesses and destroyed livelihoods.
We deserve better.Families from Erie to Philadelphia watch as their kids leave for jobs outside the state every day. This needs to change. As Governor, Bill will work to get our economy thriving again. He'll lower
Pennsylvania's tax burden on working families, cut unnecessary and costly red tape that increases the cost of operating a small business, empower small businesses to grow and create more jobs, and rein in out-of-control spending in Harrisburg.
Source: 2022 Pennsylvania Governor campaign website BillMcSwain.com
Feb 25, 2022
Josh Shapiro:
Get rid of nuisance taxes like the state cell phone tax
I have put forth a plan to help Pennsylvanians deal with rising costs. We put this forth a few months ago, making sure that we help seniors stay in their home by doubling what's known as the property tax rent rebate, giving them relief for household
goods, getting rid of a whole bunch of nuisance taxes like the state cell phone tax, which takes over $300 million out of the pockets of Pennsylvanians, and giving every single driver a $250 immediate gas tax rebate to offset the pain at the pump.
Source: CNN SOTU interviews on 2022 Pennsylvania Gubernatorial race
May 22, 2022
Page last updated: Feb 18, 2023