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News-Sentinel.com Your Town. Your Voice.
Opening Arguments

The give-back blues

I don't want to irritate you or anything. But:

Indiana's state tax collections continue to run well ahead of a year ago, with last month's revenue nearly 5 percent greater than in December 2010.

Figures released Thursday by the State Budget Agency show that the nearly $1.2 billion collected was also $12 million more than what was projected in the state's most recent revenue forecast.

And:

According to the latest revenue forecast, Indiana is on track to end this fiscal year with a reserve of 12.2 percent. The extra 2.2 percent, or $333 million, would be subject to the refund mechanism.

What that means is that if the new forecast is accurate, each taxpayer would get about $55 back.

Of course, other interests that receive state funding, including schools and universities, first want to fight for a chunk of that cash.

And on Wednesday, the General Assembly's two chief budget architects chafed at the prospect of tripping the taxpayer refund — an indication that although Daniels might have won the automatic refund as a political victory, it might never happen in practice.

Ah, poor babies "chafed." The more they get, the more reluctant they will be to give it back. And these are two supposedly conservative Republicans.

Comments

littlejohn
Fri, 01/06/2012 - 1:44pm

You're making fun of the use of the word "chafe," and yet the word was clearly chosen by the author of the article you have reprinted - from somewhere. I'm sure it was just an oversight, but shouldn't you identify the source?

Tim Zank
Fri, 01/06/2012 - 3:48pm

Littlejohn, try clicking on the word "and" which is in between the two stories. It's called a "link".

William Larsen
Fri, 01/06/2012 - 7:25pm

I am a full believer is actuarial accounting; paying for your future retirement by setting aside today the actuarial cost now. Indiana and most other states do not do this. A prime example is the unemployment fund, funded by a dedicated tax by employers. In bad times revenues drop. So what is the purpose of government? Do we cut expenses in bad years to match revenues; do we borrow money to pay expenses; do we have a rainy day fund that is funded enough to statistically cover a 95/99 probability the costs associated during that time?

If we have no rainy day fund, then we as residents should be supporting program cuts. If we are in favor of not cutting Medicaid, Welfare, etc during bad times, then we should have a fully funded rainy day fund.

The rainy day fund that Indiana has is a joke. However, having a correct size fund would be too tempting to drain by politicians.

The problem with the refund is that in year 2013, the refund will not correlate to those who paid the taxes.

Harl Delos
Fri, 01/06/2012 - 8:00pm

Saving for the future works if one person does it, and most do not. It doesn't work if society tries it.

Inflation occurs when too many dollars chase too few goods and services and the contrapositive is true as well. If everybody would save half of their money this year, and then spend it next year, this year there would be $1 in circulation for every $2 last year, and next year there would be $3 in circulation. The bag of lettuce that sold last year for $2 would $1 this year, and would sell for $3 next year.

Money isn't real. It's a fiction. Society can no more stockpile it for the future than one can stockpile bags of lettuce, because in 2032, or whatever date you choose, there will be a limited number of nurses and heads of lettuce and ergs of energy to be purchased, and if there are more dollars, it doesn't increase the supply, it only bids up the price.

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