I could only find ONE source for this very important story (sorry, it won't embed). Wisconsins Republican Governor Scott Walker has ordered the Department of Revenue to change the way that state income taxes are calculated and withheld from paychecks in order to give the illusion of a major tax cut.
That's right! The tax rates haven't changed, but people will get less money withheld from each paycheck giving them the illusion of a major tax cut. People will get more money in their paychecks, but they'll end up either paying more or getting a much lower refund when they file their 2014 taxes in 2015.
And that's what I call a SCAM.
We think its important to get that money in the hands of people now so they can get it into the economy,” Gov. Walker said.
Gov. Walker says the Department of Revenue is now putting it back in your paycheck.
You betcha! Give people money in their paychecks and save the nasty shock for when they file their taxes in 2015 (for him, safely AFTER the mid terms when Walker is running for re-election with his eyeballs firmly fixed on being a Presidential candidate).
“That’s real money. On top of the property tax relief we talked about last week — this is putting more money back in the hands of the hard-working taxpayers,” Gov. Walker said.
Democratic candidate for governor Mary Burke says the withholding changes amount to smoke and mirrors.
“It doesn’t put any more money into people’s pockets. It simply is changing the timing, and I of course have concerns about the irresponsibility of spending money that we don’t have here in Wisconsin. This is all based on a projected surplus that is 18 months away after adding debt,” Burke said.
Burke is right. It's a complete scam engineered to allow Walker to beat his chest about tax cuts while he's running for re-election. And the "surplus" that Walker has been proudly promoting is based not just on stripping workers, social programs and state shared revenue, but is also based on borrowed money.
The lowered tax rates that the State Legislature passed as part of the budget largely benefits the wealthy with average taxpayers getting about $12/year; not enough for Walkers big re-election dreams. A scam, the illusion of a larger tax break was needed and Walker made that occur by ordering the Department of Revenue to withhold less from paychecks.
Unfortunately, this is the ONLY news report on this tax scam, so citizens won't realize that it IS a scam. Unless we pass the news along, people won't know this until they get their nasty tax shock in 2015 when they'll have to pay in more state taxes or get a vastly lower refund.
But, that's Walkers plan; being safely re-elected for another 4 year term when taxpayers realize they've been "had" and there's nothing they can do about it. I wonder what his supporters in Waukesha County will think when they have to cough up a great big check to the state in 2015?
Stay tuned. The election year shenanigans are just getting started.