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BIG COMPANIES CHIP IN FOR HIGHER TAXES

February 12, 2007

The Des Moines Register reports that a handful of big companies are financing the push to raise the local sales tax to 7%:

The companies, which include Wells Fargo, Allied Insurance and Knapp Properties, contributed $307,500 of the $315,000 raised for the "Yes to Destiny" campaign, a recently filed state report shows.

The campaign is primarily the work of the Greater Des Moines Partnership, a business development group that says the 1 cent sales tax would generate an estimated $750 million over 10 years to help lower property taxes and finance cultural efforts

Surely at least Iowa's tax watchdog, Iowans for Tax Relief, will stand up against this, right? Well, not exactly:

Jeff Boeyink, president of Iowans for Tax Relief, said his group would generally support the proposal if it is approved by taxpayers.

"People have every right if they want to tax themselves," Boeyink said. "We're not going to be arrogant enough to suggest we know what's right or wrong for any community."

Once again demonstrating that ITR functions more as a special interest lobby than as a principled force for tax relief.

Meanwhile, another story in the Register shows that the tax increase campaign is operating with the thriftiness we've come to expect from local government here:

Of the $245,819 spent on the "Yes to Destiny" campaign so far, at least $118,000 has gone to campaign consultants.

Former Polk County Supervisor Richard "Red" Brannan, for example, has been paid more than $6,200. He did not return repeated telephone calls that sought comment about his work for the tax campaign.

Jeff Link's company, Link Strategies, has been paid more than $38,000. Link is a former chief of staff for U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin and works on former Gov. Tom Vilsack's presidential campaign. Link was paid $36,000 in November for his role in Polk County Supervisor John Mauro's re-election.

The only organized opposition to the tax increase so far seems to be at nonewsalestax.blogspot.com. With a little help from the U.S. Attorney, that may be enough.

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