The Truth In Arkansas Politics

Wow, $10 billion....that is a lot of moolah...

The RPA put out a press release this afternoon...check it out...

Mike Beebe: The $10 BILLION MAN..... And Counting

Little Rock (April 17, 2006)- Monday, April 17, 2006 is "Tax Day" or the deadline in which individuals must pay their taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and to the State of Arkansas. It is on this day every year that the citizens of Arkansas are reminded of the extraordinary tax burdens they face.

Clint Reed, Executive Director of the Republican Party of Arkansas, used "Tax Day" to highlight a pattern of fiscal irresponsibility by Arkansas' Attorney General Mike Beebe, the Democratic candidate for Governor.

"Mike Beebe is the $10 Billion Man," stated Reed. "During his 20 years of service in the Arkansas Senate, Mike Beebe voted for more than $10 Billion in tax increases on the people of this state."

Mike Beebe's voting record shows that he supported $10,386,209,475.10 in tax increases (See Supporting Documentation).

"Mike Beebe's record shows there is not a tax increase he does not like," Reed stated. "There is a pattern of fiscal irresponsibility that cannot be ignored."

According to CNN's Money Line, Arkansas ranked 11th in the nation in state and local tax burden as a percentage of income in 2005.

"The people of Arkansas deserve to keep more of their hard earned paychecks and pay less in taxes when they check out at the grocery store," Reed continued. "However, Mike Beebe does not agree with this approach to protecting Arkansans' hard earned money, and that is very disturbing."

Reed continued by saying, "From proposing raising property taxes, being opposed to a supermajority to raise the sales tax in the legislature, and having voted to raise taxes by more than $10 billion dollars while in the legislature, Mike Beebe's tax policy is flat-out wrong."

The impact of Mike Beebe's sales tax increases alone was over $700 million last year. Furthermore, the sales tax was only 3% when he was first elected to the Arkansas Senate, and it is now stands at 6%.

Mike Beebe has voted for enough tax increases to fund the general revenue portion of Arkansas's budget for two years. For example, the general revenue budget for fiscal year 2004-05 was $4,756,726,527.07.

Republican Gubernatorial candidate Asa Hutchinson has proposed making it harder to raise taxes by requiring a super-majority vote before the state legislature can raise sales or general taxes. Historically, Arkansas lawmakers have turned to the sales tax to bring in more money to the state. These repeated tax increases over-burden working families and have a chilling effect on the economy, particularly small businesses.

Earlier this year, Republican legislators released their "Blueprint for Reform" that included several tax reform proposals. These reforms included the following: raising from $6,000 to $12,000 annually the state tax exemption for pension/retirement income; requiring a supermajority vote both legislative bodies to raise the state sales tax; providing a consumer tax credit of $500 annually for alternative fuels, including bio-based fuels and ethanol, and repealing the sales tax on utilities for manufacturers.