Dr. Bill Nolte, Associate Superintendent of Haywood County Schools

Dr. Bill Nolte, Associate Superintendent of Haywood County Schools

August 1-3, 2014 would have been the tax free weekend for North Carolina had it not been eliminated last year by the state General Assembly.  Wonder how many families are headed to Tennessee or South Carolina or Georgia for their tax free weekends?  Add that to the gasoline tax for each state and you are left scratching your head trying to figure out what our state elected officials are doing?

Why would they eliminate the back-to-school tax free weekend at the same time they decreased the sales tax and increased the fuel tax.  If I didn’t know better, I say they were not just trying to run off public school folks.  It appears as if the majority of state legislative officials are trying to run off everyone.  Okay, that is a little overstated.  You have to admit, a lot of the stuff coming out of the state General Assembly is counterintuitive.

If bordering states have improved their economies with higher sales tax and lower fuel taxes, why did our state do the exact opposite in 2013?  I have asked this question to liberals and conservatives.  No one can give me a reasonable answer.  I’m not looking for political rhetoric; just a logical reason for why the sales tax was decreased and the ridiculously high fuel tax was increased even more.  Here is some factual background from taxfoundation.org and taxadmin.org for 2014.

State

NC Sales Tax

Income Tax

Gas Per Gallon

Diesel Per Gallon

NC

6.9%

5.8%

37.75 cents

37.75 cents

TN

9.45%

0%

21.4 cents

18.4 cents

SC

7.19%

0% to 7%

16.75 cents

16.75 cents

GA

6.97%

1% to 6%

19.3 cents

21.3 cents

 

This column is about taxing smart, not more tax or less tax.  The NC General Assembly decreased the sales tax and increased the already outrageously high fuel tax.  That makes no sense (or cents).  If fuel taxes are low, poor folks can drive to work and business owners can be more productive and profitable.  Isn’t that what we want?  Just imagine what could happen if we all paid ten or fifteen cents less per gallon for fuel.  Decreases in fuel tax revenues could be covered by increased business productivity, more individual discretionary spending from the fuel tax savings and a return to the previous sales tax.  Since we must have some taxes, let’s at least have taxes that are smart and make common sense.