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Reader Poll: Do You Support Governor Wolf’s Tax Plans?

wolf-budget addressIt was go big or go home time and the new Governor swung for the fences.

Last week, Gov. Wolf delivered his first budget address to the State Legislature.

As part of his proposal, Wolf unveiled an ambitious plan to change the state’s tax structure.

Under the Governor’s plan, income and sales taxes would marginally increase. At the same time, property and corporate taxes would be drastically cut.

These ideas face a steep uphill climb in the Legislature and it’s not clear if the public would even support Gov. Wolf’s plan.

So we thought we’d ask our readers.

Do you support Governor Wolf’s plan to increase the income and sales tax while decreasing the property and corporate tax?


  • No (55%)
  • Yes (45%)

Total Voters: 1,421

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31 Responses

  1. I certainly don’t think that net corporate taxes should be lowered while increasing taxes on ordinary people. I also disagree with increasing sales taxes and income taxes together. Usually states with higher sales tax have low or no income taxes—like Texas and Florida. To raise regressive sales taxes while raising personal income taxes and lowering corporate taxes (and property taxes, which gives more money to richer people) seems…. Republican.
    There’s an idea perpetuated by the “don’t tax the corporation” crowd that claims that the corporate tax rate is what determines where companies locate, but it’s more than that. Job-rich companies want to locate somewhere where the cost-of-living and their employees state taxes will allow them, unfortunately, to pay lower wages and still have their employees (and their executives) enjoy a high standard of living. Corporate income taxes can be bargained away as incentives, but personal income and sales tax aren’t useful that way. If we lower the corporate tax rate, what else is the state going to give corporations as subsidies that we the people have to pay?

  2. We have been being forced to pay over-taxation without any access to justice, freedoms or liberties and absolutely no representation at all for decades. Paying a system to keep us oppressed and continually making laws against our rights to call them legal. My son cannot even fill out a job application and I sued the school for this Honest Services Fraud…. yet am being threatened to be perceived as mandated to continue to pay school taxes-how? The school he went to is now even closed and the principal last I knew on charges. I would like to see some Reachable Justice for abuses and monopoly of expenses being forced on us all. I am not against our New Governor either…. Start right-right start… yet, how when un-constitutional statutes and allowed abuses are not being removed totally? And We The People have no ability to reach any even perceived justice within this system?

  3. You need to totally ELIMINATE the school property tax by passing HB-SB/76, and not by just decreasing the current rate…

  4. The people of Pa do not Need any more tax increases. We are now taxed to DEATH. Our Property Taxes are so high that people are loosing their homes to their School Districts. This is the American Dream??? We the people want PROPERTY TAX ELIMINATION HB/76 NOW. Stop trying to get us a plan that looks like HB/76. You are to represent us in state Gov. we don’t want your Ideas we want you all to do what the people want. The people will always WIN, it might take time but we will WIN. Gov. you will only serve ONE term. Your tax plans just put us in Pa further in the hole. Please resign, you sir are not for the people or for PA

  5. The Governor’s plan is the worst possible scenario. It raises the same taxes as HB/SB76 but not enough to fully fund schools so he says school taxes will be reduced. The problem is their no mechanism to keep local school boards from raising them up again. This is the worst of the worst and the governor is just trying to get support from the right while actually catering to the teachers union which he owes his existence to.

    The only viable answer is total elimination of school property taxes by passing HB/ SB76 not acting like you are.

  6. Wolf ran his own business. If he told Bob his employee that he would have to give a certain percent of his salary to Frank, how do you think Bob would feel? Frank, I’m sure, would be elated! I love when our politicos put the rich vs poor, 1% vs the 99% argument into play. You want to say a redistribution plan then look at his numbers at http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/http;/www.portal.state.pa.us;80/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_123706_1481908_0_0_18/EdBudget%202016-17%20proposed%20SPTRA%20Mar2015.xlsx

  7. In reference to the “working poor” or the “it affects the poor”: the latest census data indicates that 42 percent of poor households actually own their own homes. Currently, if school property taxes are not paid, these “working poor” (and anyone else in PA) will lose their home. Eliminating school property taxes takes the financial burden off “the working poor” and gives them a real choice on what, where and when to spend money on. As it stands right now, they don’t have a choice. Pay up or get out!

  8. The only way I would ever agree to an increase of sales and income tax would be if school property taxes were completely eliminated. By the way how can I cast my vote for this poll? Is it closed or fixed?

  9. We truly need Schhol Tax Elimination, Do not need reduction. been paying this tax 50 years and so have many others. time for a change like SB HB 76, make it happen. only way to go!

  10. Obama’s economy recovered from the largest GOP recession since Herbert Hoover. Reagan’s economy was based on Jimmy Carter’s and Paul Volcker’s success in ending the stagflation caused by the oil shocks of the 1970s.

  11. Kevin: Don’t get me started on Obama. I wish he would have taxed the 1% like he should have but didn’t when he had two houses of Congress in Democratic control. Obama failed to do that, he failed to address income inequality or poverty. So Obama’s redistribution policy hasn’t worked because he has failed to do it. Instead of letting the Bush tax cuts expire, Obama signed them back into law giving more breaks to the 1%. As for Saint Reagan’s trickle down economics; it started with him where we began to give the rich tax breaks. He deregulated Wall Street and dropped the middle class tax rate that was between 71 and 91 down to 28. The result was turning the middle class into the working poor. Before, going back to Eisenhower, the rich were were paying high tax rates which resulted in a strong middle class.Reagan ended that. The 80’s were a decade filled with corporate greed because they had a president that looked out for them. Ever since, wages have stagnated while wages for the top 1% have gotten higher further widening the income gap. As for the so-called great economy of the 80’s, that was a bubble that burst during Bush 41’s presidency causing him to raise taxes resulting in his defeat in 1992. So Kevin, don’t give me any Conservative bs on how great Saint Reagan is or how great his trickle down economics are because they never have been and never will be. In fact, Obama has done nothing to get rid of it which is why wage stagnation, income-inequality and the middle class are vanishing. Obama has been nothing but a corporate puppet along with GOP puppets in Congress who make it worse.

  12. I have noticed that Pennsylvania doesn’t have the recycling of plastic where the deposit helps people pay for necessities. This is a job that is dirty, time consuming but honest. Its a job that pays for itself. A boy that helps his mother would be more inclined to collect bottles for a deposit like New York. I believe it would help with the recycling also and would show a different level of responsibility. The government doesn’t take their share of blame but do take their share of taxes.

  13. 30 % of this commonwealth do not own property. How long do we have to support people who boast about the value of their homes, yet cry about paying tax on that property? And thank you for cutting corporate tax and laying the burden on the worker.

  14. burn the working poor again as usual.We don’t own property so all we get is tax increases.

  15. @Dave – Reagan’s “trickle-down” economics worked pretty well. How is Obama’s redistribution economics working?

  16. Dave S.: I hope Wolf does try to redistribute money to those who don’t have it. The problem we have in this country is that the wealthiest 1% are having it too good at the top while the 99% have income inequality and barely able to live on their wages. Conservatives like yourself love giving all the breaks to the 1% while thinking that the rest will magically “trickle down” to the rest of us when it never does. To be honest, I would rather Wolf tax(except a raise in the sales tax-which will not happen) than cut essential programs like Corbett did.

  17. Wolfe is just a tax and spend Democrat who will try to redistribute money by using the property tax as his tool to shift money from those who have it to those who do not.

  18. While Wolfe said he would not accept a salary, he would make up for it in his proposed Corporation tax breaks.

  19. While Wolfe said he would not accept a salary, he would make up for it in corporate tax breaks for himself.

  20. The state receives enough money from the taxes they have in place now. Taxes could be decreased if the public pension plan was updated to what all we non-public employees receive. Why should tax payed pensions be better? The pension debt is appalling and no amount of tax increases will stop it. The pension plans must be changed.
    Wake up Pennsylvania.

  21. Someone needs to show explain last years Transportation Bill to the governor. That bill increased the gas tax from .80/gallon to 2.80/gallon in four years. I’m not sure why he keeps saying we don’t have a tax on gas. The current tax goes to the supplier but we pay that in the price they charge. I believe he now intends on charging a tax to the purchaser. WOW!!! he’s like Obama. tax, tax and tax you more

  22. Anyone seen any estimates on how much closing business tax loopholes will cover reducing the corporate tax rate?

  23. I don’t know, Dave. The Republicans, when they like tax increases at all, have always liked a sales tax increase. I don’t (sales taxes are regressive) but they do.

  24. The 5% severance tax is a good idea. Lower property taxes would slow the loss of our retirees to other states like Delaware. Some states have a 7.5% severance

  25. The only thing I do not like about Wolf’s budget is a sales tax increase. Things are expensive enough as it is. A sales tax increase would make it even more expensive. But, we don’t have to worry because the likelihood of it passing is zero. We are not going to get everything passed from his budget. The 60% of the poll must be panicky conservatives who are crapping their pants. Everyone needs to just calm down.

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    Total Voters: 30

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