Screw The "Most Vulnerable?" - Granite Grok

Screw The “Most Vulnerable?”

Internet access - NH House bans taxing internet accessThis morning’s Union Leader reported the passage of a bill in the New Hampshire House that would ban any tax on internet access.  They also reported that it included $1.7 million in funding for the reduction of the developmentally disabled services wait list.  The vote margin was 245-80, with the majority of dissenters on the Democrat side.

If this reporting is accurate the scope of the lefts hypocrisy here might be epic.  Internet and broadband access have been used as a left wing class, warfare, dirge.  Voting to tax it is not exactly “pro less-fortunate” nor pro-more “in need of internet access.”  But to vote against funding the disabled services list again?

First and foremost, the funding.  Going back (at least) as far as 2007, the Democrats have repeatedly voted against efforts by Republicans to provide funding to reduce or eliminate any waiting list for developmentally disabled services.  This is curious given the lefts wailing wall antics during the budget votes.  No need to go to the theater just show up at the state house while they are debating the Republican budget.  You’ll have all the over-acting you can handle–for free.

So perhaps there was something else in the legislation that was so horrid to the ever-pragmatic left that even the promise of aid, that would justify their own rhetoric, was not enough of an incentive to take one for the team?

It can’t be the elimination of an internet access tax can it?  Are liberals so enamored of taxes that they would vote to prevent helping people in need to keep them, even a tax on something they claim to want more people to have access to?  The internet helps poor folk get training and find work, after all, right?

…opponents of the prohibition said the state can ill afford to give up the $6 million annually.

“How can we meet the needs if we continue down this path of revenue cuts with no plan for offsets,” said Rep. William Hatch, D-Gorham

This is a bit of a conundrum.  Since when did Democrats every really care about punching million dollar holes in the budget?  Whatever happened to “spend first, tax later?”  Why not just take care of the developmentally disabled and then see what happens with the internet access tax out of the question?

Or maybe there is no question.

DRA Commissioner Kevin Clougherty has said the tax law does not expressly tax Internet access , but the state does tax Internet access when companies bundle services and do not account for them separately.

So how do we know there will be a  6million dollar problem to offset?  The article is not clear on that point.  One this did become clear, however…the real reason for the objection.  This bill also changes the BET, the Business Enterprise Tax.

 Increasing the threshold for paying the business enterprise tax from $75,000 to $100,000 and for payrolls from $150,000 to $200,000 for gross receipts was added to SB 399.

That is a bold move that encourages growth and hiring.   Growth and hiring, in case you had forgotten, reduces the burden on the state by lowering unemployment and cutting back on the number of less-fortunate folks.  It also encourages people to engage in commerce and to be self-reliant.

Well that explains their objection.  The Democrats appear more interested in making sure we have a “most vulnerable.”

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