Bakk proposes clothing tax
A key legislator say he wants to expand the state sales tax to clothing and use the revenue to reduce the budget deficit and pay off a school funding shift.
Senate tax committee chairman Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, outlined legislation today that he said will also reduce the deficit by $257 million in the first year and repay schools more than $120 million. He said in the second year the overall sales tax rate would drop by one quarter of one percent. Bakk, who's also a DFL candidate for governor, said the change would make the sales tax system less regressive.
"Previous governors since back to when I was in school have always, when the state has had a financial crisis, been willing to consider some revenue," Bakk said. "I would argue this isn't even a tax increase. It's actually a cut."
Senate Republican Minority Leader David Senjem, R-Rochester, released a statement in response to Bakk's plan.
"Minnesota families are currently overburdened with excessive taxes and Senator Bakk's call for new tax increases is simply the wrong approach to jump-starting Minnesota's economy," Senjem wrote.
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