As an example of the Commonwealth's effort to help the cities and towns deal with the property tax burden, a local option to the tax on restaurant meals has been instituted whereby the tax rate would increase from 6.25% to 7% on a local option basis, but the additional .75% would go to the municipality. This came up for a vote at the Plymouth Town Meeting last week and was passed by a three vote margin.
Supporters argued that the Town should take advantage of this option to help offset the dramatic decline in state aid. Hands were wrung as this was seen as a small bit of relief to the property tax burden. And while money is fungible, I suspect instead of keeping the lid on the growth of property taxes, the money raised will probably end up funding another parade, or perhaps buying a third big belly trash compactor. And,as one opposition speaker noted, perhaps paraphrasing Gertrude Stein, "a tax is a tax is a tax." Here we are in the middle of a recession-induced 10% unemployment rate and we are increasing taxes, again!
But the story doesn't end here. Tax opponents have hit the bricks with a a petition to send the decision to the voters for a second opinion. But time is short. Most of the local restaurants have the petitions, so drop by and add your signature. If you can't find one, drop me an email. The petitions have to be turned in within the next few days, so act now.
Sunday morning, we signed the petition at the Stop & Shop at Exit 6. Interestingly enough, there was also a second effort going on to petition the state to rollback the recent state sales tax on alcoholic beverages, which already carry an excise tax. In other words, a tax on a tax. Dueling petitions, right here in America's Home Town. I suspect that the local effort will stand a much better chance of achieving at least a small bit of tax relief.
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