November 22, 2007 12:00 am
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Innkeeper’s tax adds insult to injury
They just do not get it. A major issue in elections just held throughout the state was taxation, yet already a Howard County organization is proposing that Howard County hike the “innkeeper’s” tax. How much of the working citizen’s paycheck will be filling government treasuries before it’s all over?
I frequently read criticisms leveled at politicians who suggest that government be run like a business, meaning that there are cost cutting measures and trimming potentially available by submitting government with business analysis techniques.
Yet over and over, government does business things; the role of the Kokomo/Howard County Convention & Visitor’s Bureau is but one example. In our market economy, customers are protected from predatory pricing through competition and their own purchasing decisions. When government plays business, citizens have no market protections. Revenues are collected through taxation, which are enforced by the government. We have no choice but to pay, regardless of how well or poorly the “business” is doing. In the end, government has little incentive to improve, but a lot of incentive to tax.
To add insult to injury, this is deceptively called the “innkeeper’s” tax. The owners and managers of hotels and motels are not taxing us; government is taxing us. The innkeepers are merely pawns of the government in this game; they get to play the part of tax collectors and receive consumer complaints for charging more. I must admit that government is rather clever when it comes to shifting responsibility for economic collusion. I have expressed this before: to the best of my knowledge, no nation has ever taxed its way to prosperity.
Charles A. Layne, Bunker Hill
UAW is not the enemy
It is interesting that front page coverage was given to a negative article bashing UAW Local 292. Edith Buckley, a Delphi UAW Milwaukee to Delphi UAW Kokomo transfer arrived in Kokomo, previously informed, previously forewarned and decision made. When Delphi laid her off, she somehow came to the conclusion Local 292 lied to her.
What the sister fails to understand is neither the UAW or Local 292 has ever laid off a worker, Delphi Management laid off 55. The UAW or Local 292 has never closed a plant, Delphi Management closed 21.
The article states Delphi offered the Milwaukee workers $25,000 to relocate. What the sister fails to understand Is Delphi never willingly offers anything unless the UAW negotiated contracts demand it. In the past, if work moved from one plant to another, you lost your job period. The UAW fought hard and won transfer rights.
The $25,000 relocation allowance was another UAW secured benefit. Supplemental Unemployment benefits, continued heath care coverage while on lay off, recall rights from lay off and even the severance package were all UAW demanded benefits. Delphi Management would love it if every laid off worker accepted the severance package, they possibly believe those accepting severance could then be replaced by temporary workers. The UAW and Local 292 doesn’t tell workers what decision to make, they have given each worker options.
Kokomo is a great town, a factory town, a Union town. UAW Local 292 has a long and positive history in Kokomo. Over 10,000 members active and retire belong to Local 292. We’re very proud to be UAW, we’re proud of Local 292 and we’re proud of President Kacee Anderson. There is deep compassion and empathy for our laid off brothers and sisters, unfortunately Local 292 doesn’t have the financial means to provide benefits to our laid off members. Extensive efforts were made to identify community and state resources and provide that information to each laid off member. Every UAW Local is facing these same problems. Corporate greed, unfair trade laws and a government blind to the needs of the working class are our true enemies, not each other.
Lana Puterbaugh, Kokomo
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