This letter to the editor was published in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Tuesday, March 22, 2022.
On Sunday, March 6, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette published the editorial, “Legislators should approve state corporate tax cut”. The author built an argument for lowering PA’s corporate tax rate from 9.99% to 7.99% based primarily on the lower tax rates in nearby states (New York and Virginia). It reasoned that this would bring more businesses here, increase our population, and increase tax revenue overall.
Please, no more sad, misguided propaganda that lowering taxes on the rich will somehow bring in more revenue! What happens when neighboring states lower corporate tax rates to match the decrease in Pennsylvania? Will we lower ours again until, in the end, corporations pay no tax?
There are provisions in the bill to raise the tax rate again if the cuts do not work. Who are you kidding? The Chamber of Commerce will spend millions lobbying Harrisburg and contributing heavily to legislative campaigns to make sure that never happens.
Instead, we will raise the sales tax, put tolls on bridges and roads, increase vehicle license and registration fees, increase parking ticket prices, increase property taxes with exemptions for big corporations, etc., so the wealthy do not have to pay for bridges and roads, schools, police, fire departments, or anything else that makes PA livable.
I say raise the corporate tax rate and add another tier to our income tax rate for those who make a lot of money in PA. I say, if you are unwilling to pay your fair share, we don’t want you here!
We need to start saying this outloud because the rich and big corporations still haven’t heard us: If you are unwilling to pay your fair share, we don’t want you here!
It is time to turn this ship around.