Brewer puts state budget hole at $4B, unveils tax increase, budget plans - Phoenix Business Journal:

jiqatili.wordpress.com
Brewer has talked about a five-point budgegt plan for months, but has not officially laid outher details. The Republican governor sent a budgeg outline to the Legislatureon Monday. It include s asking voters to approvea 36-month, 1-cent increasse to the state’s 5.6 percent sales tax. She does not want to extenr the sales tax to currentlyg exempted servicesand items. A Democratic plan unleashed last week woule lower the salestax rate, but extend it to variouzs services not already taxed. The governor’w budget plan puts the fiscaol 2010 deficitat $4 billion, up from previouws estimates of $3 billion.
Brewer’s budget also callsw for a three-year phase-out of the $250 millio n state equalization rateproperty tax. That tax has been on but will come back at the end of the year withou tfurther action. Business and real estate groupz favor a full repeal of theequalizatiom tax. “While the governor’s budget regarding statee equalization repeal is astep forward, our organization canno t accept multiple historic tax increases without requisitd spending cuts that approach what the private secto r has already endured,” said Tim Lawless, Arizona president of the National Association of Industrial and Office Propertiesa real estate group.
“Now is especially not the time to raise propertyg taxes withthe Prop. 13 movement lurking. We are however, to a ballot referrak that lets the people decide whether they want the sales tax rateds increased along with a future ballot measure to adjusf automaticspending increases.” Lawles s warned that bringing back a property tax that hits both homeowners and businesse s could help spur 2010 balloty measures that impose California Proposition 13-styl e restrictions on property taxation.
Brewer said the sales tax increasd wouldbe temporary, and she woulde like to see some reductions down the road to corporate and business taxes to help attracg investments to the Antitax advocates and conservative lawmakers oppose the sales tax increasr and want to try to solvee the fiscal 2010 budget without raising taxes. Brewer has promisee to veto budgets that rely too much on federalo stimulus money and programj cuts to balance the The governor’s budget also looks to protecrt university and public health funding via federalk stimulus money, and wants voters in 2010 to undo currentf restrictions that keep the Legislaturre from cutting voter-mandated spending.
Teachers unions and Democrats opposdethat idea.