Roger Sheffield: Governor Sununu vetoed Democrats plan for tax on income

To The Daily Sun,

Earlier this month, Governor Sununu stood up to the Democrat Legislature and vetoed their income tax proposal. If you have heard Democrats speak about the proposal, they probably did not use the term “income tax.” Instead, proponents of the bill use terms like “premium on wages” or “payroll deductions” to describe how they intend to pay for their paid family and medical leave insurance program. Regardless of the semantics, the fact remains that their proposal would have subtracted money out of workers’ paychecks.

It is despicable that Democrats would attempt to levy an income tax on Granite Staters during a pandemic. Many New Hampshire residents have lost their jobs, taken pay reductions and experienced economic hardship since the pandemic began. The last thing these individuals need is for state government to shake them down for more money.

Relatedly, Governor Sununu submitted his own innovative paid family and medical leave plan to the Legislature for consideration. The difference? The governor’s plan did not include an income tax. Also, the plan would have expanded paid family medical leave benefits to more New Hampshire residents than ever before and included more choice, providing every employee and employer the option to opt-in to the program. His plan sounds like a better deal to me.

Thankfully, Governor Sununu kept his promise to veto any income tax that made it to his desk.

Roger Sheffield

Meredith