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As the legislature’s Tax Reform Task Force gets down to work, there is serious talk of simplifying the state’s antiquated tax code. However, the complexity of actually overhauling the way government services are funded will be anything but simple.
Task Force members have said they’ll look at Utah’s system of taxation from every angle: nothing is off the table; no sacred cows; no current tax is safe and no exemption is automatically protected.
It sounds awfully ambitious, even idealistic, yet KSL believes meaningful change is possible.
First, lawmakers seem enthusiastic about tackling the issue; tax reform is fundamental to the governor’s agenda; and the public, generally, supports the idea.
Second, the current economic climate is conducive to change; especially the fact there is a significant surplus in state revenues.
Third, a workable blueprint for change is already on the table in the form of many excellent proposals made last November by former Governor Olene Walker and her blue-ribbon panel of experts.
The biggest stumbling block, of course, will be the reality of politics, which will include intense lobbying from every special interest group imaginable. Yet as the process proceeds, Utahns can hope the best ideas will rise to the top as lawmakers and lobbyists somehow coalesce for the common good.
