It’s Chump Change Time and WE are the Chumps!

Wednesday, November 7th, 2007

It’s Chump Change Time and WE are the Chumps!

Little comment needed here. Our “friends” in Annapolis want to pick our pockets - big time. Not only do they want to raise the sales tax by 20%, but they want to inlcude just about everything that moves - or doesn’t move for that matter for good measure.

It’s a feeding frenzy at the Maryland State Capitol - and we’ve been invited to dinner…as the main course.

Here’s a notice from Senator Pipkin:

November 5, 2007  Senator E.J.  Pipkin

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WARNING!  THE ANNAPOLIS WEEKEND RAID ON MARYLANDERS’ POCKETBOOKS

While millions of Marylanders were enjoying the weekend, members of the General Assembly were in Annapolis sharpening their sneak attack on our wallets. The General Assembly appears unsatisfied in settling for a regressive sales tax rate increase from 5% to 6% - a tax that particularly hurts low and middle-income citizens. This weekend the Annapolis tax and spend crowd considered a sharply expanded list of professions and businesses to apply the new higher sales tax rate.

Governor O’Malley’s sales tax increase proposal expands the 6 cent tax to include new areas of sales taxation:  real property management services, tanning, massage, physical fitness, sauna, or steam bath facility or services.  However, over the weekend House committees met to consider dozens of additional services contained in HB 11. These tax-hungry House legislators set their sites on barber or beauty services, shoe repair, exterminating, notary public, and testing laboratory services.

Not to be outdone, the Senate Budget and Tax Committee added to the sales tax expansion frenzy. The Committee offered to discuss with the Governor’s staff not only the Administration’s target list, the additional services considered in HB 11, but added a possible long list of sales tax services of its own.  (See following pages for a complete listing of services being considered). The Senate’s play list includes: computer services, funeral homes, watch and clock repairs, photofinishing, and locksmiths.

By this time next week business owners and the millions of Marylanders who use their services could be subject to a 6% sales tax for the first time. Sneak attack. Why?

When the Governor announced his proposal for an expansion of the sales tax to services, those businesses had a short time to mobilize against their inclusion in the sales tax. Those businesses that were added to the target list by HB 11 had even less time to find out about the rare weekend hearing. To make matters worse, those businesses on the Senate’s possible sales tax hit list are still unaware about the weekend’s back room deals that put them into play. So much for transparency!

Those who thought the sales tax grab had passed them by could be in for a rude awakening. The Governor’s punitive sales tax increase is about to shift from greedy to obscene.

As a consistent opponent of tax increases during this special session, I will continue to speak out against the tax and spend crowd’s plans to raid our wallets.  I believe Marylanders will rally in disgust, as I have done, against this unprecedented power play.

Services Included in HB 11:

Cable TV

Vehicle Services

Parking

Barber/Beauty

Physical Fitness Facility or Service

Docking/Landing Services

Engineering

Storage Service

Shoe Repair

Tax Preparation

Tanning/Massage/Sauna

Weighing Machine

Public Locker

Dating/Escort

Dieting Services

Direct Mail

Commercial Photo/Art

Stenographic

Exterminating

Personnel/Temporary Help

Management/Consulting/Public relations

Real Property Management

Testing Laboratory

Sign Painting

Interior Decorating

Auctioneering

Business Brokerage

Drafting

Independent Lecture Bureau

Printing Brokerage

Notary Public

Shop Window Decorating

Governor O’Malley’s Service Expansion in SB 2:

Real property management services

Tanning

Message

Physical fitness

Sauna, or steam bath facility or services

Additional services now being considered by the Senate:

Business Services:

Computer Services

Real Estate Leasing

Data Processing

Real estate agents

Advertising/Public Relations

Insurance Admin/Claims Adjusting

Market research/Public Opinion

Telemarketing

Convention and Trade Show Organizers

Entertainment Services:

Spectator Sports (including horse racing)

Golf Courses (public and private)

Concert/performance promotion, mgmt and performance

Theatre companies and dinner theatre (for-profit and non-profit)

Arcades and video games

Museums (for profit and non profit)

Gambling industries (excluding horse racing)

Bowling

Amusement and theme parks

Miniature Golf

Information Services:

Wire telecommunications carriers

Book and other publishers

Newspaper Publishers

Radio Broadcasting

Software publishers

Database and directory publishers

Periodical publishers

Television Broadcasting

Motion picture and video exhibition

On-line information services

Motion picture and video production

Telecommunications resellers

Personal Services:

Funeral Homes

Photofinishing

Locksmiths

Carpet and Upholstery Cleaning

Cemeteries and Crematories

Bail Bonding

Water softening and conditioning

Professional Services:

Legal and title services

Landscaping services

Scientific consulting services

Architectural services

Environmental consulting services

Surveying and building inspection

Repair Services:

Computer and office machine repair

Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment repair

Home and garden equipment repair, appliance repair and maintenance

Other electronic and precision equipment repair and maintenance

Consumer electronics repair

Reupholstery and furniture repair

Boat repair

Welding repair

Communication equipment repair and maintenance

Watch, clock and jewelry repair

Garment repair and alteration services

Transportation Services:

Waste Management and remediation services

Air courier services

Travel arrangement/reservation services

Freight transportation arrangement

Used household and office goods moving

Scheduled passenger air transportation

General freight trucking, local

Support activities for air transportation

Local messengers and local delivery

Other transit and ground passenger transport

Support activities for rail transport

Charter bus industry

Motor vehicle towing

Nonscheduled air transportation

Support activities for transportation

School and employee bus transportation

Scheduled freight air transportation

Interurban and rural bus transportation

Financial Services:

Securities intermediation and related activities

All other insurance related activities

Funds, trusts and other financial vehicles

Offices of bank holding companies

Offices of other holding companies

Corporate, subsidiary and regional managing offices

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