Lawmakers Aim to Cut Deal with Energy Suppliers to Sidestep Voter Approval on Tax Increase

Recently a two-percent tax on services was declared dead by the legislature, but the ransacking of the poor, elderly, and other fixed-income residents' pocket-books didn't stop there. Michigan Democratic Speaker Andy Dillon couldn't get a tax-hike past the voters so he has turned his attention towards convincing Michigan's energy suppliers to consent without a fight to a tax increase that can be directly passed onto customers as an additional fee to help make up for Michigan's overspending. It's fairly common-sense that nearly every Michigan resident utilizes electricity, except for the ones that have already been disconnected for not being able to keep up on growing energy costs.

The newest proposal by House Democrats is being brought under the code name of a utility tax and Andy Dillon claims "There are ways to subsidize [the tax] so it would not require a complete pass-through to consumers." (Detroit Free Press "Customers wouldn't cover all of tax on electric utilities" March 29, 2007) But the program will ultimately raise energy costs, reverse laws that established competition, and again shrink the pocket-books of elderly, low-income families that already rely on energy assistance, and other fixed-income residents.

Michigan appears to be circulating massive amounts of money in and out of the system to try and stay ahead of massive overspending. A large number of residents already require some form of government assistance, including assistance to pay high energy bills. Money comes out of one department, into a recipient's account, only to go back to an energy company that then pays it back to the State? Michigan's fiscal policies definitely appear to be flawed.

In September of 2004 there were already "180,000 [Detroit] city residents who pay more than 40 percent of their income for light and heat. And 217,000 more spend between 11 percent and 16 percent" of their total incomes. (Detroit News "Poor juggle bills as heat aid dries up" September 26, 2004) In the same special report, there were people going without food, without necessary medicine, or borrowed money from friends to pay energy bills. It is pretty safe to assume that the 16,000 Detroiters that were without electricity in 2004 certainly will increase if Dillon's "utility tax" is allowed to pass.

Instead of looking to ways to whittle down the oversized State operations, the Michigan Democrats are whittling away at the already poor, elderly, and other fixed-income residents to preserve their own comfy careers.

Lary Holland is a guest editor at MichiganDemocrat.Net and operates a website at http://www.laryholland.com/serendipity focusing on domestic relation type issues.