State of Virginia Archives: on Tax Reform

Bob McDonnell: I will veto any bill or budget which raises taxes

Therefore, if you pass a bill in this recession that raises taxes on the hardworking families of Virginia--I WILL VETO IT. And if you pass a budget embedded with those same tax increases--I WILL NOT APPROVE IT.

Don Beyer: Restore highest personal income tax rate to 39.6%

Ed Gillespie: Believes in conservative ideas of lower taxes

Ed Gillespie: Use 40% of projected revenue growth for tax relief

Stewart called Gillespie's plan a "charade," and for good reason. It relies on that most dangerous of concepts: revenue projections. Gillespie's plan would use "40% of projected revenue growth for tax relief" and use the rest of that projected growth to cover "new spending over the next five years."

It sounds responsible. But projecting future revenue flows--even with the most sophisticated modeling--is guesswork. And even if the guesses are correct, they [don't account for] the rainy day fund, the water quality fund, the transportation trust fund and other priorities, including pay raises for state workers.

Gillespie says his cut would take just $1.3 billion from state coffers. Looking at the balance sheet, Virginia doesn't have that money to give.

Frank Wagner: More taxes to pay for chronic lack of transportation funding

Stewart called Gillespie's plan a "charade," and for good reason. It relies on that most dangerous of concepts: revenue projections.

Wagner is the only Republican candidate calling for more taxes to pay for what he sees as a chronic lack of transportation funding. Wagner is at least honest about his proposals. To do what he wants--even to continue doing what the state already does--would require more money. That honesty very likely means he will lose the June primary. Tax cuts are a Republican staple. Pushing a tax cut--without spending restraint, and contingent upon projections based on guesswork--may win votes. Just don't count on ever seeing a dime's worth of those promises in your pocket.

George Allen: Freedom-to-choose flat tax: present tax code or flat rate

He further added: "Now the folks who are hurt by this are not the folks who may be at a U.N. climate change conference, flying off to

George Allen: No tax increases; no defense cuts; no bargaining

Allen, who has made those defense cuts the centerpiece of his campaign of late, offered only vague solutions. He said repealing President Obama's health care law would help; and he proposed a flat tax that households could voluntarily choose over the existing tax code.

What he said repeatedly was that he would not entertain any tax increases to solve nation's budget morass or keep the government from heading off a "fiscal cliff" in January, when all Bush-era tax cuts expire and across-the-board spending cuts go into force. He accused Democrats of using the pending defense cuts to force Republicans to bargain over taxes. "The men and women in our armed forces should never be used as bargaining chips to raise taxes on job-creating small businesses," he said.

George Allen: Letting Bush tax cuts expire is a tax hike

Kaine promoted his compromise proposal of keeping the Bush tax cut levels for those who make less than $500,000 a year, and allowing them to expire for people with higher incomes. Kaine said doing so will add up to about half of the money needed to balance the budget, and help make it easier to find other targeted cuts to avoid the mandatory spending cuts. Kaine believes Allen's plan of not allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire for those who make $500,000 or more, will not work, and possibly add to the deficit.

Jennifer McClellan: Eliminating state income tax would blow huge hole in budget

That sort of massive cut could cripple funding for everything from education to infrastructure to behavioral health funding, according to McClellan. "His proposal would just blow a huge hole in our budget that would make it impossible for us to meet the needs that our constituents expect," she said.

Ken Cuccinelli: Cut taxes by $1.4 billion a year

McAuliffe said the plan "would be devastating to our economy."

Cuccinelli countered that McAuliffe was "saying whatever he thinks he has to say to get elected." And he called McAuliffe's own economic plans "pure flimflammery."

Robert Sarvis: Eliminate or dramatically reduce the income tax

• Eliminating the Car Tax, which is unpopular
• Eliminating the BPOL, Machine & Tools, Merchant Capital and other business taxes that hide the cost of taxation, burden employers, and reduce business activity
• Eliminating, or dramatically reducing, the income tax, which reduces employment and lowers take-home pay
• Moving to a uniform consumption tax on all final retail sales of goods and services
• Reforming property taxes by excluding, or lowering the rate applied to, improvements to land
• Preferring, where possible, user fees to general taxes.

Tim Kaine: Balance taxes: let Bush tax cuts expire at the top end

Tim Kaine: No need for millionaire's tax: just let Bush cuts expire

"The likes of President Obama?" Kaine responded.

"Well, the policies and agenda of President Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Harry Reid," said

Tim Kaine: Open to some minimum income tax level for everyone

KAINE: Well, everyone pays taxes; the statistics that have come out.

Q: I'm asking about federal income taxes.

KAINE: I would be open to a proposal that would have some minimum tax level for everyone.

ALLEN: It is typical of Tim Kaine. His record is one of always looking to raise taxes.

Kaine argued that he wasn't calling for a minimum across the board tax, but rather showing that he is open to any suggestions.

Tim Kaine: Keep Bush tax cuts except for the wealthy

Kaine promoted his compromise proposal of keeping the Bush tax cut levels for those who make less than $500,000 a year, and allowing them to expire for people with higher incomes. Kaine said doing so will add up to about half of the money needed to balance the budget, and help make it easier to find other targeted cuts to avoid the mandatory spending cuts. Kaine believes Allen's plan of not allowing the Bush tax cuts to expire for those who make $500,000 or more, will not work, and possibly add to the deficit.

Corey Stewart: Lowering taxes is the key to prosperity

Tim Kaine (D): No. They explode the deficit, only benefit big corporations & the very wealthy & raise healthcare premiums.

Corey Stewart (R): Yes. "Lowering taxes is the key to prosperity." Trump cuts have yielded low unemployment & soaring corporate profits. Suggests making permanent.

Tim Kaine: Increase income tax filing threshold from $7,000 to $12,000

Let's provide meaningful tax relief for hundreds of thousands of Virginians by increasing the filing threshold for state income tax from $7,000 to $12,000 for an individual and from $14,000 to $24,000 for a married couple. With this change, we can eliminate income tax liability for an estimated 147,000 Virginians. And we can save approximately 176,000 more people from the hassle of having taxes deducted from their paychecks, only to file a tax return at year's end to receive a complete refund.

Tim Kaine: Exempt first 20% of home value from property taxes

Donald McEachin: Make our tax code fairer, simpler, and more progressive

• oppose efforts to balance the budget on the backs of working families, including reckless "blanket" cuts like sequestration
• defend investments in education, infrastructure, research and other important priorities that make for a fairer and more prosperous society
• pursue commonsense reforms that make our tax code fairer, simpler, and more progressive

Scott Taylor: Tax consumption, not income & not corporations

The corporate tax code is literally anti-American. At 35%, the US corporate tax rate is the highest in the world. Few companies pay 35% because of loopholes and deductions available only to them. Meanwhile, Fortune 500 companies hold more than $2.4 TRILLION in corporate profits overseas. They will not bring it back the United States because they have to pay 35% of whatever amount they bring back to the US Treasury. Congress' inability to fix this problem is flat-out negligent and reckless.

Tim Kaine: Trump tax cuts explode deficit & only benefit the wealthy

Tim Kaine (D): No. They explode the deficit, only benefit big corporations & the very wealthy & raise healthcare premiums.

Corey Stewart (R): Yes. "Lowering taxes is the key to prosperity." Trump cuts have yielded low unemployment & soaring corporate profits. Suggests making permanent.

Corey Stewart: Cut taxes and regulations to boost jobs

Pete Snyder: I will oppose and veto any and all efforts to increase taxes

Glenn Youngkin: We will double the standard deduction on income taxes

Glenn Youngkin: Eliminated grocery tax; look forward to more tax breaks

Those states that we compete with most directly--North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida and Texas--have not only recovered all of the jobs lost during the pandemic, but they've actually added a collective 1.3 million jobs. That data tells an undeniable story. Virginians are moving to states with lower taxes and lower cost of living and as those Virginians pack up and move away so go the jobs, investments, and tax revenue they drive.

Glenn Youngkin: Increase standard deduction; $1B of surplus for tax relief

Daniel Gade: Wants a flat tax, or very simplified tax code

Corey Stewart: The wealthy are already disproportionately taxed

A: Oppose. The wealthy are already disproportionately taxed and it will not solve the problem. Congress must cut spending.

Kirk Cox: Give it back: for return extra revenues to taxpayers

Ed Gillespie: Decrease state's personal income tax rate to spur growth

The Gillespie campaign said Tom Perriello's plan could increase the costs of services "like a haircut or an auto repair" and hurt job growth by raising taxes on small business owners. Perriello said his plan would create a "level playing field" for small businesses [by raising taxes on the highest personal income tax brackets as well as on big business].

"The contrast in the two plans is clear," said Gillespie spokeswoman Abbi Sigler. "Ed wants to cut taxes for all Virginians. Tom Perriello believes in a bigger government funded by tax hikes that harm economic growth and job creation."

Ralph Northam: Raise income tax rate by 1% for income over $500,000

Tom Perriello: Raise income tax rate by 1% for income over $500,000

Perriello proposed raising the state's personal income tax rate by 1 percentage point for those making more than $500,000 per year, and 1.5 percentage points for those earning more than $1 million, a hike the Perriello campaign said would leave rates unchanged for 99% of Virginia residents.

The former representative said he would seek to force corporations to pay more by enacting a minimum tax floor and requiring corporations that operate in multiple states to report their income in a combined form.

"It's time we finally put to rest the myth of trickle-down economics and reject the Bush/Trump/Gillespie approach of cutting taxes for the wealthy once and for all," Perriello said in his tax proposal.

Mark Herring: Crack down on worker exploitation to avoid paying taxes

According to the release, misclassification is one of the most common forms of worker exploitation and often involves identifying an employee as an "independent contractor" in order to avoid paying unemployment and workers taxes.

Jennifer Carroll Foy: Refund income taxes to those earning less than $20,000

Amanda Chase: Help business by opposing tax increases & cutting red tape

Frank Wagner: We need income tax for programs and AAA bond rating

Ed Gillespie's tax plan is typical of a DC-insider and proves definitively that he doesn't know anything about state government or our obligations to Virginia families & businesses. This so-called tax plan is really a lazy political stunt.

Gillespie's idea to take 40% of the projected growth in revenue and set it aside for an income tax cut ignores the fact that we are required to deal with federally-mandated Medicaid payments; we have to reduce the cost of college tuition; and we have untold billions of dollars in mandated water quality improvements that must be completed.