Dear Editor,
In reference to last week’s letter, “Wyoming will have to change its taxing habits,” Don Thorson and I probably agree on more points than either of us would admit to.
Taxes can happen in three flavors— tax on income, tax on wealth and tax on consumption.
Federal income tax has been avoided by the really big earners. Our politicians have helped the avoiders by writing exceptions and exemptions for them.
Would state income tax be immune to that corruption?
Property tax is the primary source of tax on wealth. The “fairness” of that tax depends on the state legislators who write the law and the assessors. Since the legislators have, so to speak, skin in the game, it is unlikely that they will be in a rush to do whatever might be necessary to improve the state’s income.
The wells and the mines have been our “sugar daddy” and daddy’s pockets are getting empty. Some other progressive states have income taxes, higher property taxes and higher sales taxes. Some of them seem to be doing just fine. Most of those states treat their citizens fairly well.
I would like to see a comparison of the cost/benefit ratio of some of those states to Wyoming.
It is a difficult problem. Nothing is free.
—Jerry Baird