LEGISLATORS FACING CUTS URGE “TAX FAIRNESS”

They can't say the t-word in the 2009 legislative session, but two top Democratic and Republican Senate leaders agreed Tuesday on a polite euphemism for taxes as Florida lawmakers search for solutions to the state's revenue shortages. "When I look at the tax problems we face, the first word I really think of is the f-word - that's right, 'fairness,'" said Sen. Thad Altman, R-Melbourne, sending a spark through an audience of about 50 at a public forum. "I hope the revenue shortfall we're having right now can be a catalyst to have Florida really not only take a look at our tax problem but also take action to permanently fix it." With estimates of the state's revenue shortfall running close to $5 billion for the fiscal year starting July 1 -- plus perhaps $500 million for the current fiscal year -- State Sen. Dan Gelber said Democrats will be pursuing new revenue sources. He and Altman addressed the Florida's Fiscal Storm forum separately, but both men used the same word for what the more conservative House leadership is certain to call a tax increase. "I think the Senate is going to look at all revenues and nothing is off the table," said Gelber, D-Miami Beach. "The term we're going to use is 'tax fairness.'" It starts today in the Senate Finance and Taxation Committee, which Altman chairs. He said the panel will take up the state's cigarette tax, which some lawmakers want to raise by as much as $1 per pack, along with a "streamlining" of state sales taxes so Florida can join more than 20 other states in a national compact for collecting the levy on "remote" sales like Internet and mail-order transactions. "I would not be surprised if the Senate increases revenues by $2 billion, but it will be under the rubric of tax fairness," said Gelber, a former House minority leader who is running for the U.S. Senate. Democrats are outnumbered 26-14 in the Senate but the chamber is slightly more amenable to tax ideas more than the House, which is more conservative. The lower chamber, also GOP-run, is more inclined to cut spending -- which has already been reduced by about $6 billion in the past two years. Altman and Gelber didn't rule out further excruciating budget cuts. Gov. Charlie Crist will put forth his budget proposals later this week.
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Thanks to Mark Pudlow for the clip and the lead.