Ron Brown: Flat tax nightmare

I just acquired a small boat along with the five-year-old title. I noted the difference between the tag and title fee then and now.

For a boat under 26 feet, title was $20 and now is $30, a 50 percent increase. A one-year registration was $15 and is now $40. A three-year registration was $40 and now is $100.

These are not yachts. These are the 14-foot aluminum boats that folks on a fixed income, often just Social Security, use for what may be the sole recreational outlet we have.

That tax break the General Assembly gave the wealthy? The legislators stuck it to the rest of us to make up the revenue loss. Same thing with DMV fees.

Memory tells me that little utility trailer for hauling my lawn mower went from $10 to $28. Now they want to tax my haircuts, my car repairs and other services.

Those among the medium-to-low income, low-to-no-information voters who put Republicans in power, take a quick course in economics. Flat taxes nail the not so well off while bringing Christmas in April to the wealthy.

This story was originally published August 25, 2015 at 4:28 PM with the headline "Ron Brown: Flat tax nightmare."