PLAYING RUSSIAN ROULETTE WITH TAXATION

The people of Massachusetts find themselves struggling to survive an uncertain economic future, working hard to protect their financial security.  In addition to this challenge, Massachusetts’s citizens often find themselves forced to overcome actions taken by the state’s onerous political machine, the Democratic Party, which frequently places its concerns over those of the people of Massachusetts.

 Massachusetts had a very recent lesson in this, when the Democratically controlled Massachusetts Legislature, desperate to find revenue to support a multi-billion dollar Transportation bill, found themselves a little short of cash.  What did they do?   They decided to impose an “innovation tax” on software developers in this state.  The state’s high tech sector has provided this Commonwealth with many a golden egg over the past few years.  In these desperate times, our state’ s software entrepreneurs are risking all to make a go of it.  Their success means revenue coming into our state’ coffers.  What does the political machine on Beacon Hill do?    They impose a tax on them, threatening their very survival.

Demonstrating that the spirit of tax resistance is not dead in Massachusetts, the state’s software entrepreneurs rose up and challenged the machine and got them to back down with assurances that the tax will be repealed.  Governor Patrick signed a bill repealing the tax on Friday. But don’t rest easy my friend.  Somebody is going to have to pay for the 161 Million dollar hole the software industry just put in the grand plan of our state’s political machine.  Rest assured this money will have to come from somewhere, and you can bet the Legislature has earnestly begun the search to find a less resistant quarry to prey on.  Like a game of Russian roulette, the gun barrel of taxation has passed from the nose of the software industry, but be prepared, it may soon be pointing at you.

Dennis Galvin