Progressives to roll out tax proposals to counter Shumlin administration’s cuts to programs for the poor

by Anne Galloway | February 14, 2013 vtdigger.org State Representative Chris Pearson is holding a press conference today to announce $50 million in new tax proposals. The representative from Burlington says he will be presenting a variety of options for raising new revenues that hold one goal in common: Taxing Vermonters at the top of the economic ladder.
‘ The administration’ s proposals for revenue all comes from Vermonters at the bottom,’ Pearson said.
Pearson, who has described Gov. Peter Shumlin as a Democrat with ‘ progressive ideals and tea party funding schemes,’ says the administration’ s budget protects Vermont’ s wealthiest individuals at the expense of the working poor. The Shumlin administration has proposed capping the state’ s welfare program and gutting the Earned Income Tax Credit system to pay for child-care subsidies.
‘ The Reach Up cuts, as others have articulated well, are generally short-sighted, if not deeply harmful to moms and kids ‘ that’ s who benefits from those programs,’ Pearson said. ‘ We are very interested in expanding child-care subsidies and making more money available for more Vermonters, but not at the expense of more important low-income programs.’
The governor’ s EITC proposal, Pearson says, has garnered ‘ tripartisan’ dislike among Progressives, Democrats and Republicans.
Pearson says he has found a variety of new revenue options that he says he will describe in detail today at a press conference at 11 a.m. in the Cedar Creek Room at the Statehouse. Other lawmakers will be on hand to support the initiative.
‘ We are offering a menu ‘ some big and small [items] ‘ aimed at generating revenues from folks who have seen their incomes swell in the last decade even despite the Great Recession,’ Pearson said.
Since 2001, Vermonters who earn $100,000 a year or more have seen income gains of 75 percent to 106 percent, according to data from financial analysts Kavet and Rockler. Millionaires have seen a 136 percent increase in incomes, while Vermonters who are in the lowest income brackets have seen their incomes drop by 3 percent to 13 percent, according to data from the Vermont Department of Taxes.
The governor opposes increases in ‘ broad-based taxes,’ which in his view include property, income and sales taxes. Shumlin has aggressively fought off demands to increase tax rates on wealthy individuals. He has said Vermont’ s taxes are progressive and already deliver a heavy hit on the state’ s richest residents.
Pearson’ s media avail follows a ‘ Have a Heart’ presser held by Vermont Legal Aid, protesting the administration’ s Reach Up and EITC proposals. It’ s the third press conference held by Vermont Legal Aid since the governor introduced his budget on Jan. 24.