HIGHER TAXES? RIGHT NOW?
The governor of Minnesota is a doctrinaire liberal. He wants to raise taxes and he wants affluent people to pay their “fair share.” Since we are already paying more than our fair share, I wrote the following article for the Minneapolis newspaper. They ran it February 1.
This is not the year to raise taxes in Minnesota (“Walz’s budget raises taxes on wealthy,” front page, Jan. 27). The reputation of the Twin Cities has taken a hit. People across the country see Minnesota differently than in the past. We are likely going to experience a reduction in visitors, tourists, new people moving here and branch office openings. The negative national publicity over the ongoing crime boom hurts our state. Already, some people are exiting Minneapolis because of fear for their safety.
We already have one of the highest state tax rates in the U.S. New taxes will mean that over half the earnings of high-income people go to the government. This will cause more people to forsake our state for warmer climes. Already southwest Florida has a burgeoning population of former Minnesota citizens who pay no state tax, no capital gains tax, and no state inheritance tax. You don’t want the stream of affluent people leaving Minnesota to turn into an avalanche.
Wealthy citizens use a wide variety of services that employ people. The more rich people, the more jobs. The highest living standards are found in countries with the most millionaires. Furthermore, the contributions and generosity of the rich fund many worthwhile causes. The current plan to once again hike state taxes will harm our prosperity. It will be superimposed on a planned jump in federal taxes to levels that become punitive and if that happens, a lot more people will be saying goodbye to our state.
