OK Gov. Mary Fallin gets her tax increase

[Keith and stuff]

In her State of the State speech, Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin said she wanted to increase taxes in Oklahoma. Unfortunately, she was able to get her plan sent to her desk. The tax on a pack of cigarettes will soon be $2.53 in OK, the highest in the region. You have to drive all the way to CA, MN, or PA to find a higher tax. This is disturbing to me as OK is known as one of the freest states in the nation.

Americans for Tax Reform sent her a letter telling her that her plan violates here Pledge, but she signed her bill anyway.

In proposing hundreds of millions of dollars in tax increases, Gov. Fallin violated the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, a personal written commitment she made to taxpayers of Oklahoma to oppose any and all efforts to raise taxes.
https://www.atr.org/atr-opposes-oklahoma-governor-mary-fallins-tax-increases


In three months, your favorite pack of cigarettes will cost you an extra $1.50, and it's the largest tax increase on cigarettes in Oklahoma history.
http://www.newson6.com/story/35570945/cigarette-tax-increase-expected-to-make-big-impact-on-smokers-state

[phill4paul]

Buy from a neighboring state. Sell to known smokers. Ca-ching!

[otherone]

Buy from a neighboring state. Sell to known smokers. Ca-ching!

Good luck wit dat.

http://a.abcnews.com/images/US/GTY_eric_garner2_ml_140722_16x9_992.jpg

[Keith and stuff]

Gov. Mary Fallin also got a new 1.25 percent tax on vehicle purchases signed into law. It is hard for legislators in OK and AK right now, with the price of oil being below what they would like for several years now. AK is facing much high tax increases, but the cost of living is so high in AK that tax increase are a much smaller overall concern to the way of life up there.


The Legislature closed an $878 million hole in the budget through a combination of agency budget cuts and several revenue raising measures, including a $1.50-per-pack cigarette fee and a new 1.25 percent tax on vehicle purchases. Those two bills alone are expected to generate about $380 million annually, but critics say they violate constitutional provisions that prohibit revenue-raising measures from being passed in the final week of session and require tax increases to be approved with a three-fourth’s vote of the Legislature.
http://press-leader.com/news/6719/republican-gov-mary-fallin-signs-6-8b-spending-plan-to-fund-oklahoma-government