Monday, April 17th, 2006,
by Fred (,
eminent domain, Missouri, property, taxes
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Meryl Yourish on the suicide bombing in Tel Aviv
Once more, for those who claim that the palestinian murderers use suicide bombing attacks because they don’t have tanks or other military weapons, I should like to point out that Tel Aviv has never been a part of the occupied territories.The bombing took place in Tel Aviv. Six people dead so far, 52 wounded, two critically. The wounded, of course, carry nails and shrapnel in their bodies, as well as rat poison in many cases. The murderers put it in to cause more bleeding, in the hopes of killing more people. These are the bombs used in “self-defense.â€
Islamic Jihad and Fatah — I’m sorry, Al-Aqsa — are claiming the bombing. Hamas says it was self-defense.
Sure. Self-defense. In Tel Aviv. At a bus station. At a falafel shop. Those are dangerous people, falafel-eaters.
No, they carry out these terrorist attacks because they are murderous thugs who like to kill Jews. They kill people like Philip Balahsan, who was at the site of the bombing with his two children. Hamas are terrorists, and any government led by Hamas is a terror government. This attack, coming a mere two weeks after Hamas took over the PA, should heighten the resolve of all western governments to eliminate funding to the Palestinians. They voted for terrorists, so now they must reap what they sowed.
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Wednesday, April 12th, 2006,
by Fred (,
baseball, government, taxes
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Boston politicos are bent out of shape over private parking fees at Fenway
Mayor Thomas “Mumbles” Menino issued a statement saying he’s going to seek a city ordinance capping how much private lots can charge for parking. One of those city councilors called the rates “criminal,” and city officials are looking at ways to punish the lot owners — such as rigorous inspections, citations, and even pulling their parking licenses.Pardon me, but when the hell did “cheap parking” become a Constitutional right? Especially “cheap parking to go see a baseball game?”
Here’s a simple test for the parking socialists: check out the lots that charge the most on game day. If they’re full, then they’re not charging too much. People who can not or will not pay that much will say “screw it” and find another way to deal with it. The lot owners are not sending armed attendants out into the street to force people to park there.
The real issue here is not that the prices are too high, but that the city isn’t getting their piece of the pie. They see some people making really good money, and are infuriated that they can’t get their hands on it. To be financially successful is a bad thing, and must be punished.
Jay Tea’s absolutely right. This is free enterprise at work. If the prices are too high, the lots will be empty. Don’t want to pay $90? Drive a little further and walk. Or find alternative transportation. It’s none of the government’s business what these private landowners charge for parking. Or what private businesses charge for anything, for that matter, absent abuse of monopoly power or price fixing. But you never go wrong in Massachusetts defending the wallets of Red Sox Nation.
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Thursday, April 6th, 2006,
by Fred (,
economics, Kirkwood, Missouri, taxes
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Kirkwood mayor proposes sales, property tax hikes
The mayor proposes that voters approve a sales tax of one-fourth of 1 percent for the fire department and a property-tax increase of 17 cents for each $100 of assessed value for the police department.Each would raise about $1 million, the mayor said on Monday. Each department would receive a minimum of $500,000 in additional money, he said. The remainder would replace general fund money spent on those departments and free the revenue for other municipal uses.
The two taxes would be separate proposals on the ballot. Swoboda said they could go before voters in the August primary election or in the election in April of next year.
The changes amount to a 3.5% increase in the sales tax and a 35.7% increase in the Kirkwood portion of the property tax. The property tax increase will be 2.6% of the total property tax bill (including the myriad county taxes). Kirkwood residents are loathe to approve new taxes, havign rejected a 34 cent increase in the property tax in 2004.
It appears that Kirkwood has taken some steps to reduce spending, and residents are likely to respond to requests for additional funds for public safety. But what purpose did the “community development director” and her secretary serve? What other unnecessary spending can be cut? This remains a city with a $15.9 million General Fund budget for 27,000 residents. Compare this with the nearby city of Webster Groves, which spends $12.2 million for its 23,000 residents (Kirkwood budget, Webster Groves budget). Were Kirkwood to spend at the rate Webster does, it could save well over $1 million each year.
Governments should tax as little and spend as little as possible, even at the local level.
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Wednesday, March 29th, 2006,
by Fred (,
advertising, government, St. Louis, taxes
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St. Louis set to unveil new slogan, logo
The St. Louis ads will begin running in mid-April, marking the first time the slogan and logo will appear before a large national audience. The local marketing campaign is part of a larger, $20 million economic development program that’s being led by the St. Louis Regional Chamber & Growth Association.The five-year program was crafted amid concerns that St. Louis has trailed the nation in job growth over the last 30 years. The plan is being funded with public and private dollars…
The agency also hopes to persuade national reporters to write stories about St. Louis topics such as the efforts to build a biotech hub and revive downtown. In addition, plans call for more face-to-face meetings with consultants who advise companies on where to locate and for promotions at events such as an upcoming biotech conference in Chicago. A redesigned Web site is supporting the effort, too.
Putting aside the aesthetic merits of the logo (which aren’t many - what’s up with that upside-down exclamation point), the endeavor is not likely to have significant effect on job growth in St. Louis. If the region wants to attract business and create jobs, it should start with tax policy by repealing the St. Louis wage tax that drives existing business out of the city. A government that welcomes business and that doesn’t drive it out of town through high taxes would do a lot more good than a fancy new logo and ad campaign.
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Wednesday, March 22nd, 2006,
by Fred (,
education, Missouri, taxes, vouchers
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Missouri SB 962, the Missouri Student Success Scholarship Tax Credit Program provides that
any taxpayer who makes contributions to a nonprofit scholarship granting organization may claim a credit against the tax otherwise due … in an amount equal to one hundred percent of the amount the taxpayer contributed during the tax year for which the credit is claimed
The bill limits the total amount of tax credit available to $40 million per year. The scholarships at issue in the legislation are
grants to students to cover all or part of the tuition and fees at either a qualified non-public school or a qualified public school, or other approved educational expenses, including supplemental services including private tutors and books or transportation to a public school outside of a student’s resident school district.
Needless to say, any time money goes to private schools, even indirectly via tax credits for private donations to private organizations offering scholarships for use at such schools, the usual coalition of organizations used to suckling at the public education teat gets up in arms. This time they’re particularly hyperbolic.
“This is the beginning of the end of public education as we know it,” said Jo Wanda Bozeman, the president of the Parkway Education Association.”These vouchers are designed to create two separate school systems in this country, not based on race but one for the well-to-do and one for the lower and middle classes.”
The program doesn’t exactly create vouchers - it encourages donations to private “scholarship granting organizations” through tax credits. Missouri law already provides 45 different tax credits for qualified taxpayers. This just adds another one. Given that taxpayers can get a credit for participation in public schools’ sponsorship and mentoring programs, why not offer a credit for contributions to scholarship funds to allow students to attend schools where such programs are less necessary?
The specific complaints of the Parkway teachers union representative are, of course, misplaced. To begin with, it’s a little odd coming from Parkway, whose students would not be eligible in the first place and whose public schools are actually decent. Putting that aside, it’s clear that this bill is not the beginning of the end of public schools. Recipients of scholarships can use them to attend other public schools, after all, and public schools that perform adequately would likely retain their students even if private school scholarships are available.
The idea that this bill creates a class-based two-tier educational system is particularly absurd. Rich residents of St. Louis and Kansas City already have the opportunity to put their kids in private schools. The scholarships are only available to students from families whose total annual income does not exceed an amount equal to 185% of the income standard used to qualify for a free or reduced price lunch under the national Free or Reduced Price Lunch Program. For school year 2006-07, the income guideline for a family of four is $37,000. Not exactly well-to-do.
The teachers unions need to spend more time improving how they teach and less time freaking out that the free flow of cash might be restricted.
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Friday, March 10th, 2006,
by Fred (,
economics, Show Me Institute, St. Louis, taxes
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As noted here a couple of days ago, a new study has found that St. Louis’ earnings tax has been partly responsible for the flight of residents and jobs to the suburbs. Now David Nicklaus notes that St. Louis has placed itself in a vicious cycle in which it may not be able to eliminate the tax:
The property tax is the biggest money-raiser for many other cities, and some theorists consider it the ideal funding source for local government.
“Property taxes in general are considered to be less distortionary than other taxes,†said Patrick Fleenor, chief economist at the Tax Foundation in Washington. “It’s harder for people to avoid.â€
But St. Louis has set up a big barrier to increasing its property-tax take: For decades, nearly every project built in the city has received either tax abatement or tax-increment financing.
That’s partly because the city has been desperate for any investment in an era when residents and businesses were fleeing. The flight is due in part to the earnings tax. But tax abatement makes the earnings tax more important in the city’s revenue picture.
That’s the inherent problem with high taxes - St. Louis put itself in a bad position by taxing earnings of workers and the businesses that employ them. Then, when the residents and businesses fled to the low-tax suburbs, the city used tax gimmickry to attract development. Now the city is hamstrung by the tax gimmickry in its attempt to get rid of the tax that caused the problem in the first place. Far better to (a) spend less and (b) avoid TIFs and tax abatement that distort financial incentives and the revenue base of the city. Unfortunately, is it too late already?
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Wednesday, March 8th, 2006,
by Fred (,
economics, politics, Show Me Institute, St. Louis, taxes
,
There’s something amiss in Target-land, at least in the cookware department:
Exhibit 1: Monkey Full Bedskirt
Exhibit 2: Dragonfly Stained Glass Fireplace Screen
Exhibit 3: Chenille Throw
Exhibit Last: Swimmingly Purple Art Box
They’ll fix it eventually. But it’s funny. For what it’s worth, this is the real Swimmingly Purple Art Box. And the real Dragonfly Stained Glass Fireplace Screen. The real Chenille Throw is now a wall clock:
[via Consumerist]
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