myerstownherald.com

Republican state senators should be applauded for their efforts to restore fiscal sanity to Pennsylvania. They have united in opposition to Gov. Edward Rendell’s proposed personal income tax increase to balance the budget. Instead of backing a tax increase, they are proposing to balance the budget by reducing spending. This approach is what most states, including our own, should be doing.
The senators are against a tax increase because of its effect on the economy during a recession and on the general principle that the people have a right to use their own money as they see fit. The Democrats, including Rendell, are criticizing the Republicans for withholding money from vital state services, including public education. As a result of the budget impasse, state employees have not been paid for their work.
The Democratic argument may appear to make sense at first glance. The Democrats say that if particular state services are needed, they should be funded. If the funding is not there, the Democrats want to raise taxes on residents to obtain the money.
The problem with this argument is that resources are not unlimited. If money is taken from people to pay for government services, the economy suffers because people are not spending this money to buy things, nor are they investing this money to start or expand businesses.
Instead, this money is taken out of the private sector, where it fuels job growth, and is given to the state, which is inefficient and wasteful. People faced with higher taxes will move their businesses to a state with lower taxes, and people are less likely to locate new businesses in a state with higher taxes.
In fact, the argument that raising taxes is necessary to promote social services is counterproductive. With a strong economy, the state needs to provide fewer social services. By taking money out of the private sector, the state is harming the economy and increasing the need for social services. The best way to cure this problem is to keep taxes low to keep Pennsylvania’s economy strong.
Pennsylvania should not end up like California and Massachusetts, which try to provide every social service imaginable. If Pennsylvania follows this route, businesses will leave the state and social problems will get worse, not better. Rendell’s approach of higher spending and higher taxation is based on this model.
Instead, Pennsylvania should follow the lead of the Senate Republicans. Lower taxes and less government spending is better for the economy. When the economy is doing well, social conditions improve. The Senate Republicans must continue to resist Rendell’s attempts to raise taxes.