Washington State aircraft owners are rallying the troops to fight a new tax that could add hundreds — or even thousands — of dollars a year to their fixed costs. The proposed tax would levy a 1% excise tax based on the value of aircraft. Under the measure, a plane worth $100,000 would be taxed $1,000.
The proposed tax, recommended by a citizens’ commission on tax preferences, was brought to the attention of the Washington Pilots Association by State Sen. Cheryl Pflug (R), who told the association that the commission views the tax as a “revenue opportunity” and is recommending the state legislature impose it.
“From what I can gather, it is suggested that the legislature look at raising the tax as an ‘opportunity’ to backfill the budget gap,” said John Townsley, who keeps tabs on government and how it impacts aviation for the WPA. “Given the dire situation of the state budget I’m sure raising the excise tax will get a hard look, and may appear in legislation this session.”
Townsley is asking all Washington pilots to contact their elected representatives and let their opposition to the tax be known.
“It’s not enough just to say we don’t want it,” he warned. “Pilots, aircraft owners, and businesses that depend on GA should contact their legislators in Olympia to explain why significantly increasing the excise tax would be counterproductive in the current economic climate. They should explain the impacts in very personal terms. How will they suffer from this tax? Why is the tax unjust and unwarranted?”
The tax proposal raises a lot of questions, he added. Among them, what will the impact of the tax be on aviation businesses? “It is conceivable that some businesses might change their business model, as in hire less staff to pay for the tax rather than someone’s salary.”
For more information: WPAflys.org or Leg.wa.gov
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Larry D. Butler, Ph. D. says
January 20, 2010 at 8:30 amSuch plans to “attack” the pocketbooks of those who have worked and prospered is not new. This is exactly what one should expect from a “Tax and Spend” liberal government, as is now found in Washington State. Democrats have long been advocates of “taking what they can” from those who have always “paid their own way” and then give the proceeds to others who won’t work! The Commission mentioned, is a direct representative to those in state government, who are always looking for “taxable sources” to fund “special pet programs”, that keeps these same liberals in power in the first place, by buying votes with your tax money.
When an economy is doing well, these liberals fill the ranks of non-taxpaying constituiants with “entitlement programs”, from the public treasury. Then when times are tough (as now) they still have their “entitlement programs” to fund and so cut services to the very people who have paid “more than their fair share” all along, instead of cutting the “budget busting entitlement programs”! As a researcher, I see this in all states with huge “non-working” populations and “huge entitlement programs”. They make up the “budget short-fall” on the backs of those who have always “paid their own way”, while never cutting the programs of those who don’t work. A classic example is: Wyoming. They don’t have “massive numbers” of non-workers, so there are no “massive entitlement programs” to fund. The net result is when times get tough, they continue along with little difficulty. It’s called conservatism…don’t look for it in Washington state politics.