Higher Taxes

Maryland has had governors who have left the state prosperous and free. Now we've got Martin O'Malley, who in six short years has given us higher taxes, casinos, speed cameras, is attempting to dump pension costs on the counties, and finessed a billion-dollar budget shortfall. Oh, yes, and he's given us gay marriage, too, no matter what actual Marylanders think about it. Certainly, the governor doesn't care what citizens think. He's likely already ordered up his "O'Malley for President" buttons.

WASHINGTON -- President Clinton said yesterday that his economic program would require courage and sacrifices to do "something no generation has ever had to do before."Laying groundwork for the spending cuts and tax increases he plans to announce Feb. 17 in his State of the Union address, Mr. Clinton said the greatest burden will be borne by the rich, whom he described as "those who got the most and gave the least during the past dozen years.""While most Americans paid higher taxes on lower real incomes, the privileged few paid lower taxes on much higher real incomes," Mr. Clinton said in a five-minute radio address, his first as president.

After a lifetime in Maryland, my husband and I have come to the conclusion to put our farm on the market. Due to the burden of new regulations and the financial burden of higher taxes, we can no longer afford to live in this state. While lawmakers in Annapolis struggle to pay for their excessive spending while furthering their own political agendas, we are the ones being penalized. Whether it be higher taxes on gasoline, higher costs to citizens in order to facilitate illegal immigration, speed-camera rip-offs or new fines and penalties for lawful firearms ownership, we are watching our income dwindle.

Anyone who has ever participated in contract negotiations of any kind has seen it all before. One side declares an impasse, leaves in a huff and accuses the other of being stubborn and unreasonable. Those left behind in negotiations point their fingers in the opposite direction. That's why it would be foolish to read too much in the abrupt end of debt ceiling talks on Thursday. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor walked away because Democrats want to include taxes in the potential $2 trillion package.

Brian Murphy's analysis of Warren Buffet's position on paying higher taxes misses the larger point Mr. Buffet was making ("Raising taxes on the rich won't cause them to flee," Aug. 29). The practical and reasonable response to our country's deficit situation is a combination of reduced spending and increased taxes. Only through both can we reduce the deficit significantly and ensure a stable economy that allows us to make the kind of investments we need in order to create jobs.

I hope that driving on the newly repaved sections of Interstate 95 - without paying tolls - will be a reminder to everyone of how well-maintained infrastructure (highways, bridges, water and sewer lines) make life for all of us more comfortable as well as safer. The U.S. is seriously behind in maintaining and upgrading its infrastructure, much of which was built in the decades after World War II. For the last 20 years we have been starving our public sector by cutting taxes to the point where we now worry about not having enough money even to pay our police, firefighters and teachers.

Editor: I am a resident of Harford County who has just finished reading the article "Harford County officials push for county business loan fund," in your April 13 edition. You quoted Economic Development Director [Jim] Richardson, as saying that Harford County could be the, "New Silicon Valley. " Other than the fact that a handful of developers and politicians would make a ton of money, why in the world would anyone want to transform a beautiful county into a network of congested roads, shopping centers, office buildings, housing developments, higher crime rate, overcrowded schools and probably higher taxes!

THE notion of tax accountability has a rich American heritage. Will Rogers, in filling out his IRS tax form in the 1930s, listed as a deduction: "Bad Debt, U.S. Government -- $40,000."While tax accountability is not a new concept, it is undergoing a rather controversial transformation under the new administration. The Clinton administration is talking about tax accountability as "shared sacrifice," believing American taxpayers are willing to pay their fair share to reduce the federal deficit.

ANNAPOLIS -- Even if the Maryland General Assembly provides full funding for next year's long scheduled $184 million increase in education aid, schools won't be much better off because of cuts in other education programs, the House Appropriations Committee has been told.Susan R. Buswell, lobbyist for the Maryland Association of Boards of Education, said yesterday deep cuts in state programs that help Baltimore and the 23 counties pay for school buses, Social Security and retirement benefits for teachers, out-of-state placement of special education students, and other educational programs could wipe out all but about $60 million of the one-year increase in school spending known as "APEX."

ANNAPOLIS -- Even if the Maryland General Assembly provides full funding for next year's long scheduled, $184 million increase in education aid, schools won't be much better off because of cuts in other education programs, the House Appropriations Committee was told yesterday.Susan R. Buswell, lobbyist for the Maryland Association of Boards of Education, said deep cuts in state programs that help Baltimore and the 23 counties pay for school buses, Social Security and retirement benefits for teachers, out-of-state placement of special education students, and other educational programs could wipe out all but about $60 million of the one-year increase in school spending known as "APEX."