RALEIGH – The newspapers, the radio stations, the TV newscasts, the media web sites – all were buzzing this weekend about the state’s back-to-school holiday from sales taxes. Reportedly shoppers were out in force to benefit from this “gift,” which was expected to save taxpayers between $8 million and $10 million.
Last year, the North Carolina legislature set up an old, classic “bait and switch” play. They loudly trumpeted their plans to emulate other states with a popular sales-tax holiday while simultaneously imposing an increase in the state sales tax of nearly half a billion dollars. Obviously, shoppers were big losers in this deal, which passed last fall largely on a party-line vote.
Democrats wanted hundreds of millions of dollars from consumers but feared the political consequences. So they offered three offsetting tax cuts, none worth very much. Continued budget deficits led lawmakers last week to ax two of the cuts, in the income tax, but they retained the trusty sales-tax holiday.
Basically, North Carolinians bought it. Out shopping with the tax-cut crumbs the big-spending politicians left them, they told news reporters how delighted they were that someone in Raleigh was paying attention to them for a change. They gushed about the savings (which were only to be found on selected items and were capped in value).
I guarantee that many a nervous legislator felt a little better. Maybe voters will remember the politicians’ generosity in next month’s primary, or perhaps even in November. Maybe that will let them off the hook.
If voters take the bait, they deserve to get hooked.