Letters to the Editor

Readers write: Letters to the editor, February 22, 2017

Explain the double tax

As I read the income tax proposal by the House: If you have capital gains you would be double taxed — first at 15 percent on your federal tax return, and again another 10 percent on your state tax return. Maybe they should explain this.

— Greg Svendsen
Anchorage

Glimmer of hope, but please revisit Senate Bill 21

Open letter to the members of the House Finance Committee and House majority coalition:

Thank you for doing the very difficult job of navigating through the budgeting process. The citizens who elect our public servants expect nothing less. You have been "hired" by your constituents through the election process to do the job. I do not, nor would I, want to tackle the budget.

This issue has been a concern to me, along with many other citizens who worked on Proposition 1 to overturn Senate Bill 21, the 2013 oil tax bill. What we feared with the passage of SB 21 has, unfortunately, come to pass. The Republican legislators promised that should SB 21 not work, they would revisit the law. They were given an opportunity last session(s).

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Last year, we watched multiple legislative sessions go into overtime with no progress made. I was alarmed when the last session recessed with no budget. It seemed some legislators were more apt to worry about their re-election than about the state of the state.

I see a glimmer of hope in the work of the House Majority and thank you for your effort.

Please revisit SB 21. It is ridiculous that Alaska's public servants give breaks to oil companies, who owe their allegiance to stockholders, and ask their constituents, who they represent, to tighten their belts.

— Barbara Ann Gazaway
Anchorage

Time to remind Murkowski
to defend women's rights

Losing access to Planned Parenthood would be a blow to all Alaskans, but especially to those who need access to affordable, quality health care the most. Here in Alaska, Planned Parenthood provides critical health care services like cancer screenings, sexually transmmitted diseases testing and treatment, birth control, and more to thousands of patients all across the state.

I remember how honest Sen. Murkowski was after she apologized for supporting the Blunt amendment limiting access to contraception in 2012. It was refreshing to see a politician come out and admit that she made a mistake and I think her candor and honesty played into Alaskans' decision to send her back to Washington, D.C.

We need that honesty and commitment to Alaskans now more than ever. Now is the time for Murkowski to stand up for women — not just here in Alaska, but all across the country. I hope Alaskans will join me and call Murkowski's office today and tell her to defend women's rights.

— Christina Sumey
Anchorage

Look to Batchelor's words

With nationalism, Islamophobia, and fear of immigrants and refugees on the rise in our country, I appreciate the words Stephen Batchelor wrote in response to Britain's exit from the European Union: "The world I aspire to live in is one with fewer borders, not more, greater diversity, not less, and cooperation between peoples rather than suspicion and antagonism."

— Mike Carr
Anchorage

Happy to contribute

Just want to inform all of our legislators that we will proudly chip in to a state income tax to support the services necessary to maintaining Alaska as a quality place to live.

— Hal and Brenda Post
Anchorage

Our delegation is in town,
unwilling to schedule town hall

If you haven't heard of the Town Hall Project, it was created by Nathan Williams, a 36-year-old freelance filmmaker who wanted to make it easier for people to meet their members of Congress. Williams thought the project would consume a couple of hours a week of his time — but now, according to The New York Times, Williams works on the Town Hall Project full-time, and he has 100 volunteers across the country helping him out.

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This morning I checked out the database for the first time and was happy to see there are town halls scheduled across the country during this week's congressional recess. But when I entered my zip code, I got this: "There are no events within 75 miles of your zip, the closest one is 1378 miles away."

This is not for lack of asking; I personally know of many individual requests for town hall meetings, and a petition is also making the rounds. We know the Alaska delegation is in town this week — Lisa Murkowski and Don Young, at least, have scheduled fundraisers. But so far all three members of our delegation have been unwilling to schedule a town hall meeting so their constituents can ask them difficult questions about, among other things, what the newly released GOP health care plan means for Alaskans.

So here is my plea to Sens. Murkowski and Sullivan and Rep. Young: Please reconsider. Fundraisers with supporters are more fun than facing voters who are anxious about the future — I get that. And you no doubt would like to avoid the boos and criticism that some of your Republican and Democratic colleagues have faced in other parts of the country. I personally believe Alaska constituents, at least the great majority of them, would be persistent but polite in voicing their legitimate grievances and concerns. And answering those grievances and concerns is the difficult task of governance — the task we elected you to take on.

— Alyson Pytte
Anchorage

Income tax portion would
kill entrepreneurial state

Re: Alaska House Bill 115

The income tax portion of this bill is bad for Alaska — self-employed persons, retirees who live on investments or property owners who want to ever sell the property. It is based on a system that is extremely poorly written, the federal income tax system, with a long-term capital gains tax as an addition.

The one thing I love about Alaska is the fact that it seems everyone has a small business. Alaskans have this amazing entrepreneurial spirit. But the income tax portion of this bill is a killer for the self-employed.

Basing the tax on the federal tax paid is totally unfair to self-employed persons as federal tax includes self-employment tax (paid by the individual) vs W-2 wage earners. (The equivalent is Social Security and Medicare tax, half paid by the employee and half paid by the employer. But neither half is included on the individual tax return.)

So if you make $50,000 in Alaska, file married filing jointly with two kids and pay for your own health insurance and are self-employed you pay Alaska income tax of about $1,050 (15 percent of federal income tax of $7,000).

Under the same circumstances if you are employed by someone else you pay Alaska income tax of about $83 (15 percent of federal income tax of $550).
The self-employed person pays $967 more. Is this what we want for our entrepreneurial state?

This is just one example of one area of this tax proposal; I can give others.
Please do not make this the law of the state I love.

— John Clonan, CPA
Sterling

The views expressed here are the writers' own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a letter under 200 words for consideration, email letters@alaskadispatch.com, or click here to submit via any web browser. Submitting a letter to the editor constitutes granting permission for it to be edited for clarity, accuracy and brevity. Send longer works of opinion to commentary@alaskadispatch.com.

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