The governor's proposals to raise income taxes and charge sales tax on motor fuel have touched a raw nerve. The justification of jobs and public safety that was offered reeks of pandering to a scared populace.
The only correlation that I see between jobs and public safety is the proliferation of police agencies over the last 20 years.
Toll facilities, Transit, DNR, DOT, and the State Police all have a highly visible presence in the state, yet we need more.
We have speed cameras that generate millions in income, but we need more. We build deluxe toll roads but we still have traffic jams, and we still need more.
We have ever-increasing state-sanctioned gambling that should generate revenue, but we need more.
We raised the sales tax recently, but we need more.
We raised vehicle registration fees and tolls, but we need more.
We raised the liquor sales tax, but we need more.
It seems that there will never be enough money to do everything that needs to be done. Maybe it is time to redefine state services.
Maybe we should have a broad conversation about what we want as citizens, instead of just expanding the status quo with ever-increasing budgets.
There is a balance to maintain between what we want and what we will pay for. Every now and then we need to step back and say enough is enough.
I'm concerned that the governor's initiatives are meant to build his bona fides for future national office. I hope the legislature can provide some balance to his ambitions.
Joe Backof, Timonium