Everyone is positively giddy, awaiting the big gift the governor and Legislature stand ready to hand out. Hard-working citizens are busy pondering the possibilities for spending that pocket change from Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s flat-tax proposal.
Huntsman, of course, calls it a meaningful tax cut.
For the great mass of average taxpayers though, that cut will amount to about $67 per household.
Oooh baby. It's burning a hole in your pocket, eh? Any thoughts on how you'll spend it?
Barring perhaps the Wasatch Fault deciding to slip, triggering the Big One, the tax reform plan Huntsman has promised for nearly two years will zip through a special legislative session this afternoon. If you remain the tiniest bit confused about the proposal, and what it means for most Utahns, don't worry. The Republicans in charge on The Hill have been huddling in closed caucus in recent weeks to hammer it all out. They claim to understand it. After some nipping and tucking, legislative leaders endorse it.
That's all that matters.
In any number of polls and legislators' town meetings, a clear majority of Utahns have said they would prefer public education get the $76 million. In the latest public opinion survey, for the Deseret Morning News on Sunday, 58 percent of Utahns said schools should get the money.
Huntsman's "flatter" income tax plan would cut Utah's top rate of 7 percent to a 5.35 percent flat rate. Taxpayers can also opt for the traditional filing plan. A flat rate allows for no credits or deductions for charitable giving. The plan's "marginal" rate would be 7 percent (though people with a deduction would avoid it) and its "effective" rate for high-income families would be 5.5 percent to 5.7 percent after deductions and credits.
While GOP lawmakers have painted this as one big pie where everyone gets a nice slice, most of us will be lucky with a sliver. It's another rich-get-richer deal, and the school system will lose again. The split on the tax break works out to $40 million to the 95 percent of Utahns who remain with the bracketed or "traditional" plan. The 5 percent who choose the flat tax will end up with $35 million.
So, start planning how to spend your savings.
Don't tell me you'll put it toward something so un-sexy as one-third of a monthly electric bill or a pair of marked-down skater shoes for your teenager. Come on, people. Spend away!
How about a road trip to Malad for 67 Idaho lottery tickets?
Oh, I forgot. This whopping cut is meant to stimulate our own economy, encouraging businesses to locate here, improving education. We'd better spend it in our own backyard.
With $67 you can buy an all-day lift pass at Alta ($53), plus change for a burger and fries. But not so for Utah's chi-chi Deer Valley, where a day pass will set you back $77. What the hey? Either way, you'll be enjoying "life elevated."
Utah's school teachers, who typically dip into their own bank accounts to help supply their classrooms of 33-plus students can really shoot the moon. A printer cartridge twin-pack costs about $55. With $9 in change, they can pick up an 8-pack of dry erase markers.
For $13.99 they can purchase a foam, 3-sided presentation board for the science fair. That's four boards with change to spare!
Don't worry. Frozen pizza sales and magazine subscriptions can cover the rest.
hmullen@sltrib.com
