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People say taxes they pay about right
Taxes provide the sustenance of government. One of the first powers bestowed on a king, dictator, or popular candidate elected to serve in government is the ability to tax. The levying and collecting of taxes has always been controversial, even more in a democracy where people elect those with the power to tax them. Currently, property taxes are a big issue between the Democratically controlled Legislature and the Republican governor. Gov. Riley has interpreted the law to require annual property appraisals. Many legislators want to use the appraised value of property on a four-year cycle. Since most people say they don't like taxes, although they enjoy schools, highways, health care and personal safety that taxes pay for, it is a tailor-made issue for political rhetoric. It is against this backdrop that AEA's Capitol Survey Research Center (CSRC) decided to find out where the typical Alabamian stands on the subject of state taxes.
Some taxes are more reliable and stable. Property taxes, business licenses, some types of severance fees, and a few others would fall into this category. Most of these taxes go to the state's general fund. Alabama's Education Trust Fund receives the more volatile but higher growing sales and income taxes which, during the past two or three years, have pumped over $2 billion into our schools and colleges. While taxes are often the topic of discussion and proposed legislation in Montgomery, very little gets changed from year to year. Predictably, AEA prevents from passing 40 to 50 tax giveaway bills each year and the session ends where it started tax-wise. The last major tax infusions for education were passed during Gov. Albert Brewer's terms and the tax on cell phones during the Siegelman administration. During Gov. Riley's term, lower income wage earners' income started to be taxed at $12,000 instead of the previous $4,600. The bottom line is that the majority of Alabama's citizens think our taxes are about right and are not in revolt against state government about their tax bill. In fact, many say they would vote to increase taxes for schools if they were told exactly how the new money was to be used.
Meantime, taxes will continue to be a popular topic of discussion in and around the State House, courthouses and city council chambers across Alabama.
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