State sales tax? Not a progressive idea!

Spectrum, by Vic Kohring

This week at the Wasilla Chamber of Commerce, a forum was held to discuss the idea of whether or not a state sales tax would be beneficial. I argued that creating a sales tax would be disastrous. Let me amplify why a sales tax or any new tax for that matter, would be a serious attack on our wallets, at a time when the economy is not exactly robust and families are struggling to keep up with their bills.

First, ask yourself, why is this tax even being proposed? Alaska has the North Slope, the great generator of money that still brings in billions, and can afford to give each resident a large check each year. So why are we being lectured by Juneau that we must hand over more of our hard-earned money? Our state government spends, by far, the most per capita on social programs than any state in the country.

The answer is that over the last three decades, ever since the gush of big oil money in the late 1970's, politicians have been spending us blind, but always with the best of intentions. They got away with it because it did not directly affect us. After all, they were spending other people's money. And they got used to it. Politicians competed with each other to "help" their constituents with "vital programs" and other easy largess. It was always with cries that we must "help the children" or "protect the environment" or do some other extremely important thing, otherwise society will crumble. Many of these government giveaways are wasteful and consume too many of our dollars. We had few of them before Big Oil and did just fine.

When we finally recognize that we have more of a spending problem than a revenue one, if we stand apart from the whole matter and look at it objectively, then we can see what is needed is a strong message to Juneau saying, "Spend less and stick to the essentials!"

If we were to have the political philosophy of our Forefathers enshrined in Juneau instead of caving in to the liberal media, if we have the sheer guts to back off on taxing and spending, then we will get our economy back into a "full speed ahead" mode. Alaska has an abundance of natural resources, intelligent, creative, hardworking people and voracious markets close by to sell our goods. Then why aren't we the richest people on earth? The answer is, government has gotten in the way, and now wants to do even more to "help" us. Government owns way too much land in Alaska, has an over-controlling mentality that costs us too much, and now wants to take away even more of our money. We must fight back. Fortunately, the Governor has made a start at major spending reductions. Let's help him by backing even greater cuts to one of the most bloated bureaucracies in the history of our country. If you were running your home with $40,000 a year and suddenly were laid off, would you write even more checks? Of course not. You would adjust your spending downward until it matched what you had in the bank. The state should be no different. Every effort ought to be made to spend only what we can afford.

I have been in office for over eight years now, elected by wide margins of people who agree with these ideas. Let's lead the rest of Alaska in this direction, toward freedom, less government, and economic abundance.

Was America made great with social programs and taxes? Decidedly not. It was made great by individual citizens like you who lived in an atmosphere of freedom to choose, freedom to create, and freedom to keep what you earn with the least amount of government intrusion.

Am I suggesting that you and I don't need Juneau or its politicians at all? I have to admit the idea has flashed across my mind more than once as I watch the tax and spend parade in the Capital!

But I would be content to let the State run the courts, police, fire protection, roads and assist in education. Am I asking for a major realignment in our political system? You bet! It's long overdue.

Vic Kohring is a Republican who represents Wasilla and the Mat-Su in the Alaska State Legislature.