Arkansans Have 8th Highest Tax Burden
This is from the American Family Association of Arkansas, Bob Hester Chairman.
"Governor Mike Huckabee said Monday that he supported a set of proposed changes in state education law that include $309 million in increased school funding." Some additional government employees would be added. As legislators and Arkansans consider this information to determine their position on this issue, the following information should be considered.
- The number of government employees in the state grew by 10% from 1997 to 2004 and salaries for government employees increased 74% from 1997 to 2004. 1 These figures do not include public school teachers and administrators.
- Arkansas ranks #49 among the states in per capita income. 2
- BUT Arkansas ranks 8th in the nation in the percent of income paid in total taxes. In other words, Arkansans pay a larger portion of their income in all taxes combined than do 42 other states in the nation. 3
- Arkansas pays more in local and state revenue as a percentage of income than does Massachusetts. 4
- Arkansas ranks #1 in the nation in the amount allowed for state and local sales tax (up to 11.5 cents.) 5
- Arkansas ranked 9th in state tax revenue growth compared to income growth from 1992 to 2002. In 2001-2002 Arkansas ranked 5th in the nation. That was before the big tax increase in education in 2003. 6
- Arkansas was one of the three states in the country that raised taxes by more than 5% in 2004 according to the study by the National Conference of State Legislatures. 7
- A two-parent family of four living at the poverty line paid $406 in Arkansas state income tax in 2005, the third-highest in the nation. 8
- The state of AR is the largest employer in Arkansas with over 50,000 employees. 9
See documentation on our site:
Contact Person:
Bobby L. Hester
American Family Association of Arkansas
P. O. Box 9076
Jonesboro, Arkansas 72401
Phone 870-932-5065 Cell 870-243-5612
posted by Mark Moore (Moderator) at Tuesday, March 21, 2006
24 Comments:
The Guv's plan to spend hundreds of millions more of our money- with NO guarantee the courts will be satisfied, is DOA.
The Gov. said he would not call the session April 3rd unless there was a "consensus". Senator Jim Holt and Rep. Jim Medley will help kill it, with plenty of help from other legislators who are finally getting a spine to stand up to the runaway courts. Either that or fear of the voters exceeds their fear of the judges.
Come on--grab your wallet and give till it hurts!
Why doesn't Hester include the bills that JP Graham lists on his blog regarding family issues?
The proposition that AFAA is unbiased seems unplausible given the skewing of their "report".
Intentionally leaving information out to strengthen the effect of your point is plain deceiving.
So, you're going to start sliming Mr. Hester too? Is every conservative group that prefers Jim Holt over your plastic imitation of a candidate necessarily suspect?
Yet AFAA states on their website that they are not endorsing any Lt. Gov. candidate, but even you admit that they prefer Jim Holt. That is deceiving. And it's not sliming to state the facts.
Arkansans pay more taxes now thanks in part to Jim Holt. He voted for enough of them.
"...sliming Hester"
How about the answer to the question, instead of mis-directions?
Instead of hiding behind misleading "reporting", how about some facts and figures. Why does the "Report" not include obviously family oriented bills like the ones JP Graham includes on his site?
There are some great well intentioned people who back Holt, but I am afraid they are only being given some of the information because they have had their trust misplaced with the AFAA. Provide proof to the contrary and I will gladly remit my opinion.
http://nomorejimholt.blogspot.com/2006/03/truth-about-american-family.html
I looked on that site and all it says is that Holt voted to fund pre-K. Is that true?
yes it is true
copy and paste the whole link it talks about other famiy issues
If you go to the bottom of the page there is a list of bills not included in the "report".
Paul Graham has absolutely no credibility on the issue of Jim Holt. None. His obsession to get Holt has led him to blunder after blunder.
Holt made one blunder. When he was a freshman legislator he voted for a temporary beer tax. He thought the proceeds were going to go to help children who were victimized by being in an alcoholic home.
It turned out he was wrong about that and the money went to what is essentially Pre-K. He voted against that bill when it came time for renewal. That is the only tax he has ever voted for, but Graham is so posionous that he twists that into a pro-tax record.
Check out SB776 of 2003.
It looks like Graham has got you again.
It was posted this morning.
I have been getting the snail mail newsletters from the AFAA for ten years, before I ever heard of Jim Holt and certainly before I heard of Paul Graham. Now it seems that because what they report is favorable to Holt the slimers are going into attack mode against the fine people of the AFAA.
The establishment attack dogs trying to slime the AFAA (and Holt) are as bad as the Clinton/Carville attack machine.
The American Family Association is a good bunch. If their stats out the liberal Republicans, so be it. Attack the liberals, but stop attacking these folks just because Holt scored well and you hate him.
I don't hate him, I just want to know why they compare and report on the votes of bills and not others when both types of bills can be considered family oriented.
I don't hate Holt, I think he is fine. I do have a problem with partial information passed off as whole.
If you don't know the answer, just say so. Don't resort to ad hominom attacks. Questions are only questions unless the answers are uncomfortable.
Then shouldn't you be e-mailing AFA Arkansas or blogging on their website? Stop whining.
Actually, they do report on the rest. If you go to their site they talk about a lot more bills. Holt and Norton were the only two to get %100 with AFAA. Matayo got 79% I think, and some of the others got in the 60s.
The bills that are going around in the Mike Masterson article are just the EDUCATION bills. Then there is another group that has the bills that cost new money- basically the education bills plus the bond issue I think.
In other words, the charge that they are ignoring other areas of the pro family agenda are false, it is just that the focus has been on education and in total spending.
Holt thought the beer tax was going for one thing and then found out he was wrong? Did he not read the whole bill before he voted or did he just not get past the word "beer". This keeps happening with him over and over again. How come no one else needs to apologize for messed up votes like he does? And he voted for more than one tax, by the way.
7:59
Education bills only, does that not include the school voucher bill, or the school prayer bill or the school bus/intruder bill?
These seem to deal with education on some levels.
Everyone knows you're just looking out for the public good (har, har).
Graham, you've been proven a liar on this blog and elsewhere. You have no credibility here. Go rant on your little pathetic blog.
Holt is on of the few that will admit his mistakes. This one was made when he had about two months as a legislator. And if you meet a legislator that tells you that he reads every bill he has voted on then you are meeting a legislator that will lie to your face. People have to get advice from others on some of this stuff and it takes a while to know who to turn to.
Now as to Paul Graham who insinuates that the AFAA is being dishonest.
Paul I am going to put my own name on this since you did the same and I don't like to say things like this about people behind their backs.
I would not say this had you not attacked the honesty of AFAA, who have been in the trenches for Christian Conservatives for 20 years :You are acting really stupid Paul. I am not saying that you ARE stupid, but your pathological hatred of Jim Holt has made you act that way. You simply throw CRAP out there that is comepletely bogus and then have to eat that same stuff when it becomes clear how bogus it is.
It has already been mentioned on this thread that the bills included were education bills and bills that cost money. It has already been said that this was not a COMPLETE listing of the bills that AFAA used to compare candidates. Already said that, right here on this thread.
You then come along and imply they are dishonest because the "school prayer" bill was not included on their list. Paul IT IS INCLUDED ON THEIR LIST. AS WAS SAID BEFORE THIS IS NOT THEIR COMPLETE LIST. This is the education ones that cost money.
Do some reasearch before you accuse people who have been selflessly fighting for Christain Conservatives for over 20 years of being dishonest. For the complete list, which includes the school prayer in the rankings, go to http://www.wpaag.org/Leg%20-%20AFA%20Voting%20Records%205%20Lt.%20Gov%20Cand..htm
Paul, your hatred of Jim Holt is twisting you into something awful. SEEK HELP.
The American Family Association being compared to the ACLU? Oh boy...
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