Fred D. Gunther: Tax reform cruelty

As it turns out, I am one of the anointed. I had my state income taxes cut by the revisions driven by the Republican majority in the legislature. A tax cut I did not ask for, want or need.

Between 2013 and 2014, my taxable income went up by $22,300. The increase in my state tax bill? $20. That’s right. I owed $20 on an additional $22,300 of taxable income. Where did my tax savings go? It went into investment and retirement accounts that will benefit North Carolina not one iota.

But here’s the “good” news: By eliminating deductions for medical expenses, the legislature will try to make up lost revenue by increasing taxes on the chronically sick and disabled. More revenue will come from the elimination of the Earned Income Tax Credit. Removing this subsidy to low-income families will make a meager existence that much harder to maintain.

Gratuitous cruelty is what passes for “tax reform” in the Kafkaesque world of the North Carolina legislature. When they comfort the comfortable while they afflict the afflicted, it is morally indefensible. There is another word for it also: evil.

This story was originally published April 25, 2015 at 4:00 PM with the headline "Fred D. Gunther: Tax reform cruelty."