Report Inappropriate Comments

Mr. Berwick is on the right track but overlooks a key point: Local communities will never, ever "reduce" their property taxes. The first rule of government is that it seeks always to expand. Instead of reducing the state sales tax, why not simply eliminate it? The larger question, and one Rhode Islanders never seem to even contemplate, is this: What specific government services do taxpayers in RI receive as a function of paying a sales and income tax that taxpayers in NH do NOT receive as a function of NOT paying a sales or income tax? In fact, the opposite is true. NH's roads are better, achievement test scores are higher, unemployment is significantly lower, the workforce is better educated and, consequently, the median income is much higher. Tuition, room, and board for an in-state student at URI in 2013-14: $23,610.....UNH: $22,768. RI's sales and income tax pays for a larger and ever more intrusive state government. It's time people stopped and asked: "What am I getting for this?"

From: A plan for the sales tax

Please explain the inappropriate content below.