Why do I say that?

Because when people hear a politician talk about tax cuts, their eyes glaze over, they start to drool, and they will do anything the politician asks them to do, including electing them over and over again.

The worst tax-promise "dealer" is Tom Brinkman and his organization COAST. To learn more about Representative Brinkman's hypocrisy, see the Mr. Smith Goes To Laughington section of my site (though this is NOT funny at all). COAST campaigns try to arbitrarily cut taxes. You probably remember the School Levy fights in Mason and Fairfield, and the fight to slash Cincinnati City Property Taxes last year (Issue 9).

I have a more reasoned, pragmatic approach to taxes. It starts with an understanding of what taxes are: taxes are the way we collectively buy government services. Therefore, just as with anything we buy, it is not the amount of taxes we pay, but the value we get for those taxes, that's important. If we feel we are not getting our money's worth, then that is what we should focus on. The citizens of Mason are paying higher property taxes than the citizens of Cincinnati... yet, every month people are moving out of Cincinnati into Mason. Why? Because the value of the services, especially schools, is higher in Mason.

Don't let any politician fool you - there are just three ways to reduce your taxes:


I am all for #1. It takes someone who is willing to do the hard, slow, and innovative work with State Government to find ways to improve efficiency. Arbitrarily cutting taxes in order to "starve the beast" does not always improve efficiency. In fact, it often makes matters worse - the government's reaction is often to cut services rather than on improving efficiency, because it is the only way to reduce spending as quickly as revenue decreases. Services are cut without adequate public discourse, and our perception of government's value may actually decrease.

We already do a little of #3. For example, the Ohio Lottery sucks millions of dollars out of Ohio's poor inner cities and rural areas to benefit the School Districts in the 7th Senate District. The Ohio Supreme Court's rulings on the current school funding formula in state requires that some of the burden be taken off the homeowner - in order to do that, someone else is going to have to pick up the slack.

If you want your taxes cut, you need to put your mouth where your money is. I want you to participate in an intelligent dialog about how to improve the value that you get from your state taxes. There are two ways you can participate:

1.Click here to tell me what state programs you would cut to pay for a tax cut. Here is what you will do:



2. Click on the Be Part of the Solution button on this page. You will have the chance to make suggestions about how to improve the value we get from our government. You can rate other people's ideas, and other people will rate your ideas.