(Washington, D.C.) – On behalf of the 30,000 members and supporters of the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) in Virginia, CCAGW President sent the following letter to State Sens. William Wampler and Charles Colgan, and State Reps. Phillip Hamilton, Vincent Callahan, Lacey Putney, and Johnny Joannou:

I am writing to request that you reject all of the tax increase proposals now before the Virginia General Assembly.

Instead of raising taxes to make up for a projected $1 billion shortfall in the state budget, you, your colleagues in the General Assembly, and Governor Mark Warner should first eliminate the numerous inefficient and low-priority programs from the $287 million spent on antiquated and underutilized mental health facilities to the $300,000 shelled out for Virginia government officials to attend a conference at the luxurious Homestead Resort that are wasting Virginia citizens’ tax dollars.

Virginians will be affected by the proposals under consideration both as state income taxpayers and as consumers.  Boosting the state sales tax from 3.5 percent to 4.5 percent and taxes on specific items like gasoline and tobacco disproportionately impact the poor and those living on fixed incomes.  In fact, according to the Congressional Budget Office, excise taxes are the most regressive type of tax and tobacco excise taxes are “the most regressive of all.”

Raising taxes could undermine Virginia’s economic recovery and contribute to job losses.  In fact, as higher sales taxes prompt consumers to go to other states and the Internet to purchase goods, Virginia could actually lose sales tax revenue.  Incredibly, the Senate bill would raise $1.8 billion in additional taxes annually to cover a budget deficit of $1 billion over two years, which means that Virginia taxpayers would be paying $2.6 billion above and beyond what is needed to balance the budget.

Increasing taxes purports to be a “quick fix” to Virginia’s budget deficit, but that won’t solve the problem.  Vote against higher income and consumer taxes and resolve to balance the budget by cutting wasteful and unnecessary spending.

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, the nation's largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.