Oregon shoppers have been getting free ride long enough and they should, “help pay for our schools, parks and health care.” Washington state representative Jim Moeller (D-49th –SW Washington) has called for the end to the sales tax exemption for Oregon shoppers because it hurts the children.
Poor Mr. Moeller. He claims Oregonians being exempted from sales tax is the number one complaint at this office.
The sales tax exemption is my No. 1 complaint from constituents.
Really? I mean that just seems hard to believe. You’d think Moeller would still be getting cranky phone calls over his candy and snack tax which would have increased
costs of Joe Sixpack during the country’s worst recession (here). You’d think that Washington residents forced to pay Oregon income tax would be the number one issue at his office! You’d think that Moeller helping out his union cronies–and thus raising costs for Washingtonians– here and here might get a few jingles on the office phone, but nope, apparently Oregonians getting a free ride on the old sales tax is what has really honked off his constituents.
Here’s the meat of Moeller’s case:
Oregonians, and anyone else who gets their mitts on an Oregon ID, don’t pay it. But guess what? Clark County is one of the top seven counties — of all 75 counties in Oregon (36) and Washington (39) — for the amount of money residents here send to Oregon for that state’s income taxes. The sales tax exemption is my No. 1 complaint from constituents. …My constituents demand the same thing: When Oregon folks shop in Washington, they should help pay for our schools, parks and health care, as promised above. Last year, it was estimated that doing away with this sales tax exemption would have generated almost $83 million in 2011-2013. The total value of the exemption is estimated at approximately $67 million for 2012-2013.
The problem for Moeller is this phrase:
When Oregon folks shop in Washington…
I recognize that you can’t see the problem because you’re bedazzled by the prospect of–what was it again?–oh, yes:
$83 million in 2011-2013 and $67 million for 2012-2013
Representative Candy (Tax) Man, let me ‘splain. People won’t seek out shopping in Washington if taxes put the costs higher. Some people like me will still do limited shopping there but the total net to the state coffers won’t be close to the $63-$83 million you’re hoping for. By the way, that’s a lot of tax money. How much stuff do you have to buy/sell to generate that kind of tax? A LOT.
I’d be willing to bet that most of the constituents who have been ringing your phone off the hook complaining of free riders from Oregon aren’t business owners. Business owners like to SELL things.
One more thing about your diatribe:
Oregonians, and anyone else who gets their mitts on an Oregon ID, don’t pay it.
Thanks to conservatives in Oregon the requirements for getting one’s mitts on an Oregon ID have been significantly tightened. Currently Washington is one of only two (?)states that lets practically anyone get an ID–including people who aren’t even citizens. Where do you stand on this issue, Rep Moeller?
If you want more money for your state you might begin by requiring your union buddies to pay the B&O tax. Other organizations do. You might want to stop carving out exemptions for your union friends on retirement benefits which add to Washington’s fiscal distress. You might want to encourage trade instead of making it even more difficult for your own people to compete. And if you want true equality on both sides of the river you could agitate for less or no sales tax. I know it’ll never happen.
