Capitol Smoke & Mirrors

There are currently 2 revealed tax increases moving through the Oklahoma capitol. Several others are still being cloaked until later in the week.   The new Tobacco Tax is being used to cloak an ObamaCare Medicaid expansion. According to Jonathan Small of the OCPA, the tax is being labeled as the savior to a dire scare tactic. The Nursing home lobby claims that most elderly will be out on the street if the tax is not passed. But the real numbers reveal that the nursing home funding gap is only about $10 million. That's just 1% of the budget gap. The rest of the Tobacco Tax bill is used for things like transitioning to an ObamaCare state exchange.   And the new Automobile tag fee claims to fund a new Oklahoma Tag. But the Oklahoman reports that only 20% of the new funds will be used for that purpose. the other 80% is not yet designated.

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​  The OCPA is an excellent source of information about state government public policy, including taxation and budgeting. Read their studies and join their events at www.ocpathink.org and on Facebook.

​  Americans For Prosperity is a fiscally conservative organization which advocates for economic freedom through limiting government taxation and regulation. they can be reached at www.ProsperityAcrossThePrairie.com and on Facebook.