Hospital Tax (No, Assessment!) Central to Budget Dispute At Special Session
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10 responses to “Hospital Tax (No, Assessment!) Central to Budget Dispute At Special Session”
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This is no different than the Commercial and Industrial property tax that the General Assembly authorized localities to impose to fund transportation improvements or the taxes levied by Fairfax County on landowners in Tysons to fund non-heavy rail transit, road, pedestrian and bike improvements in Tysons.
Special interests, including the health care industry and real estate developers, clamber for more public revenues to support their businesses. Well either we tax them to fund these extra public appropriations or the rest of us transfer wealth to them. As my Dad used to say “Put your money where your mouth is Mr. Big Shot.”
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But what is different is my main point. That enhanced real estate tax was imposed in HB 3202, the 2007 transportation tax and bond package, and was not buried as a provision in the budget.
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Point well made, Steve.
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Steve, Thanks for illuminating the three strands of Medicare-expansion debate. I’m astonished that the proposed hospital tax has gotten so little attention. It’s all the more astonishing when one considers, as you point out, that the tax is not broken out in a separate bill but embedded in the budget.
So much for transparency and open debate.
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Looks like the two alternatives are to pay as you go by collecting revenues on a continuous basis or deal with it at budget time like we already do with basic MedicAid.
I favor the pre-pay path but the Federal aspect of it is the same for both as the deal with the Feds is we pay 1/2 of regular Medicaid and 10% of the expansion.
We’ve been doing the 1/2 all along and we wait until budget time to figure out how much more we have to add…
What is a better nexus? Collecting from transactions at the hospitals or doing a GA budget deal for all taxpayers?
In terms of “transparency and open debate” – this issue is really no different than others – that’s the way the GA operates – it’s not a Medicaid-only issue.
I bet there are a crap-load of “gee I didn’t know that” parts of other bills including the so-called “Grid Transformation poobah”.
Personally, I think the Senate is being a bunch of Pissants as I’ve heard no real alternative from them… per the usual when it comes to health care…
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re: ” I’m astonished that the proposed hospital tax has gotten so little attention.”
Well…. a bunch of folks these days say that you can’t trust lame-stream media reporting and that they “trust” Facebook and blog sites for their news.
So how many “Conservative” (you know – the ones who SAY they want to keep the government transparent and accountable – as opposed to tax and spend liberals and “elites” ) …. are actually reporting this stuff for people . especially those who don’t believe or trust mainstream media anymore?
I’ve watch the tea party and other allied talk the talk now for a few years and basically they’re AWOL on sustainable, reliable, reporting of govt Instead they choose to amp up the culture wars… and blame liberals for all that they don’t like.
I’d venture to say that BR is one of the few sites in Va that delve in to some issue but by no means in depth issues like following the bills in the GA – on substance.
So.. it’s not like a lot of the info is not available. For instance, those lobbyists that Steve talks about – they all seem to know chapter and verse of the substance of the bills – to the point – they are sometimes able to convince legislators to make changes in the wording – and substance.
So….. bottom line – Who are you gonna blame for this “lack” of “reporting” and WHO would you SUPPORT to do that reporting?
Looks like another case of having your cake and wanting to eat it too!!!
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Haven’t you figured out yet, Larry, that is many cases the lobbyists actually write the first drafts of the bills? And the later amendments? But it is not the task of the lobbyist to fully explain to the public what is going on – and sometimes that would not be helpful to their cause. 🙂
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Steve – I’m well aware of that and ALEC AND the direct interests of the lobbyists.
But I AM ASKING – who among us is responsible for following the process and informing the public about it if not the lame stream Media?
We got all this blather about leftist rags and all… even Bacon seems fairly clueless and he’s supposed to be about the Blog leaders in Va.
It’s not like the info is not available … perhaps not all of it right away and some only at the time of the vote – but a significant amount IS available and yet many commenters here diss the Sierra Club and other groups.. for their participation and at the same time – condemn the “press”…
Perhaps… the inclusion of you on the BR team will fill that role ? Only problem
is that sometimes I sense you do have a horse on some of the issues.. and always appreciated when you do identify that horse.I’m also not sure how virtually EVERY ONE of your posts gets “highlighted”. I thought that was only for particularly exemplary posts… All of your are? geeze….
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I am now on the same elevated plane as the Bacon Master himself. I can edit your posts! I could delete them! Be afraid….bwahhhh.
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Oh.. I’m sure from time to time you’ll get the urge! That’s okay. I think you do probably bring a lot of inside baseball knowledge to the blog… and perhaps
help some develop a wider perspective oh how things “really work” in Richmond! I look forward to more “insights”.I don’t fear deletes or edits… life is full of them.. we deal with them.
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