Sales Tax

LANCASTER - Those purchasing alcohol in Lancaster could begin paying a higher sales tax, based on the first reading of an amendment to the city's alcohol ordinance, which was heard at Tuesday night's City Council meeting. The amendment, which will require a second reading at the Dec. 11 meeting, raises all the sales taxes by one percent. The malt sales, currently at 1.25 percent, will go to 2.25 percent; gross sales, which are 2.25 percent, will increase to 3.25 percent; and by-the-drink sales, at 3.25 percent, will go to 4.25 percent.  “We were very low to begin with,”Councilman Bret Baierlein said in a phone interview.

Dear Editor: Rep. Bob Damron, D-Nicholasville, is at it again. Always game for a half-baked scheme that resonates only under insufficient scrutiny, Damron is pushing for an annual weekend of exemption from sales taxes for back-to-school shoppers. This idea is popular for all the wrong reasons. It sounds good because everyone in Frankfort likes the idea of helping out the poor working folk with trying to send their children off to school. It sounds better because retailers want a Christmas-like shoppers' feeding frenzy in August.

Dear Editor: As a coalition made up of Kentucky's entire beverage alcohol industry, we are writing to express our strong opposition to the 6 percent alcohol tax included in Governor Fletcher's tax modernization proposal for 2005. Furthermore, we are against any tax increase on alcohol beverages, because Kentucky's taxes on alcohol are already among the highest in the country. The governor's proposal to re-apply the 6 percent sales tax to off-premise alcohol sales will upset an equitable balance that has long been part of Kentucky tax policy.

Setting the record straight Dear Editor, I did not attack Debbie Rose in the letter to the editor. I stated the reason other cities might have lower payroll taxes - because they get the payroll taxes county-wide, not just city-wide. And the county gets its payroll taxes from city employees, not just from county employees. That is why I¿stated she did not do her homework. They are paying double payroll taxes. Is this what the employees want in Winchester? The employers in other cities pay more occupational licenses than the employers do in Winchester.

When April 1 hit this year, smokers probably wished what they were seeing in stores was just an April Fools Day prank. But the higher prices for cigarettes were no joke. April 1 was the day when the state sales tax increased to 30 cents on a pack and to $3 on a carton. On that same day, the federal sales tax went up to 62 cents on a pack and $6.20 on a carton. Combined, the taxes increased to 92 cents per pack and $9.20 per carton. Managers and owners of local convenience stores and groceries say the response of smokers was predictable ?

Anybody with any sense knows you don't want to mess with somebody who likes to drink whiskey. But it turns out the people who make the stuff can be scrappers too. On Tuesday, Kentucky's bourbon distillers turned out in force in Frankfort to protest the legislature's proposed 6-cent sales tax on booze. In a demonstration reminiscent of the Boston Tea Party that ignited the American Revolution, the protesters dumped bourbon whiskey on the front steps of the Capitol - a revolting act if ever there was one. Said Jimmy Russell, master distiller for Wild Turkey, who was quoted by the Associated Press, "They've always been taxing us to death over the years.

FRANKFORT - How many times do you read a story about Kentucky actually faring better than the nation in a category? This is such a story. In its annual holiday report, released in October, the National Retail Federation predicted that holiday spending this year will total $457.4 billion, an increase of 5 percent over the 2005 Christmastime shopping season. The NRF noted that the increase from 2004 to 2005 was 6.1 percent and the average increase over the last decade has been 4.6 percent.

A bill making school supplies tax-exempt during the first week of August could help ease the back-to-school financial crunch. "On the other hand, there is certainly a certain amount of abuse where individuals make purchases that won't assist children at all in education," said Sen. Tom Buford, R-Nicholasville. House Bill 101, if passed, will provide a sales tax holiday for the first week of August each year to exempt school supplies, school art supplies and clothing with a sales price of less than $100 per item.

Restoring the $17.5 million Kentucky River lock and dam improvement project that Gov. Ernie Fletcher vetoed last spring is Rep. Bob Damron's "number-one goal" for the 2007 legislative session that kicked off Tuesday. "I think of all the projects that we had in the budget (last year), that was the most important," he said. "Nothing works if we don't have water. " The funding passed both the Senate and House of Representatives during the 2006 session, but the governor vetoed it and other capital projects because he said they could threaten the state's credit rating and finances.

The Kentucky General Assembly will begin the first part of the 2013 30-day session Jan. 8, and Sen. R.J. Palmer, D-28, said tax reform, the possible legalization of hemp and school safety could all be targeted by legislators. “I have discussed with a number of legislators the need or the idea for tax reform. I think you're seeing growing consensus that we need to do something,” Palmer said. On Dec. 17, the Blue Ribbon Commission on Tax Reform submitted recommendations to Gov. Steve Beshear and legislators for review.

LANCASTER - Those purchasing alcohol in Lancaster could begin paying a higher sales tax, based on the first reading of an amendment to the city's alcohol ordinance, which was heard at Tuesday night's City Council meeting. The amendment, which will require a second reading at the Dec. 11 meeting, raises all the sales taxes by one percent. The malt sales, currently at 1.25 percent, will go to 2.25 percent; gross sales, which are 2.25 percent, will increase to 3.25 percent; and by-the-drink sales, at 3.25 percent, will go to 4.25 percent.  “We were very low to begin with,”Councilman Bret Baierlein said in a phone interview.

Tax hikes need explanation Dear editor, I was truly flabbergasted yesterday when I saw that the fiscal court was not going to raise rates. I could only wish that the school and library boards felt the same way instead of gouging us for increases every year. I am forced to support an activity that I never use - the library - and an institution that seems to justify its existence by building new schools as if that will somehow, miraculously enhance the instructional capabilities of the teachers and lower the student dropout rate.

Many people have iPhones, iTouch or iPads. These mobile devices offer great opportunities to save money and enjoy books, games and resources. There is no end to how many free apps you can find. But one thing some new users often overlook is how to keep from spending money by accident.   Don't pay for in-app purchases There are tons of free apps for kids and adults available on the iPad, iTouch and iPhone. Many of these free games give you the option of spending real money to buy “shells, bucks or smurfberries” to build the game faster or enhance your game experience, but I never spend money on these games.

I've been fighting for years to see Kentucky overhaul its antiquated, “behind the 8-ball” tax code. This year's gubernatorial race brings us at least some progress. During the Republican primary, candidate Phil Moffett was the first to go on record - announcing on my radio show - that he would support a plan to eliminate the income tax in Kentucky and institute a broad-based, low-rate sales tax. Now, the winner of the GOP primary, Senate President David Williams, has introduced his economic plan.

A recent letter writer asked what poverty is. The technical definition is deficiency. Inadequacy. Pauper. The condition of being poor. But poverty is so much more. It is ugly. It is pain. It is misery. Loss of hope. Decaying of the spirit. A social disease. Shame and disgrace. It is something in America that cannot be excused or justified. The writer described the “many benefits” the poor receive. There are not that many. They are difficult to qualify for. They afford only the bare essentials.

Kentucky is now surrounded on three sides by neighbor states that are making dynamic conservative changes to their economic policy and experiencing dynamic results. Recently, we learned that the conservative leadership of Indiana has created a $1.2 billion dollar surplus in that state's coffers. By cutting spending, finding prudent efficiencies and without raising any taxes, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels has put Indiana on a path to financial prosperity. By assuring businesses that the state won't come around with its tax collecting hands out any time soon, they've vastly improved their business climate.