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AVPress: State to take bigger bite of your wages
Posted on October 27th, 2009 6 commentsby Craig Currier, Antelope Valley Press
Beginning next week, workers can expect to see smaller paychecks as the state government increases the amount of income taxes it withholds.
The reason is legislation passed last summer – largely unnoticed – that increases the amount of income tax withheld each pay period, though it does not change how much an employee will owe for the year.
The change amounts to a 10% increase from what was previously paid, meaning if a person owed the state $1,000 last year, the state’s Franchise Tax Board will up that to $1,100, adjusting the rate at which the money is extracted beginning Nov. 1.
For workers who make $500 each week, or $12.50 per hour, the change amounts to $1 each week, while people who earn $2,000 per week will see a difference of approximately $14.
State Sen. George Runner, R-Lancaster, and Assemblyman Steve Knight, R-Palmdale, both voted against the bill, but because no actual tax increases were involved, it passed on a simple majority in both the Assembly (46-33) and the Senate (22-16).
“You’re hard-pressed to not call this a tax increase when the reality is these individuals are going to live with less than they did before,” Runner said.
Because the tax rates have not changed, workers will be owed the money come April, but Runner said he is not convinced the state will repay the entire sum in a timely manner.
“There is no guarantee,” he said. “The best people can do is adjust their withholding so that it equals what they will owe.”
Runner said the bill was strongly opposed and was among others that slipped under the radar in July as lawmakers worked feverishly to meet budget requirements.
“It’s one of those issues that was on the list of items but didn’t have a direct impact at the time, and it was never listed as a tax increase,” he said. “It’s really just borrowing without asking permission, nor paying interest.”
Runner said the one-time claim attached to the bill does not make it excusable.
“My view is if the majority of legislators are willing to do this once, they will continue to do it in order to facilitate their spending habits,” he said.
6 responses to “AVPress: State to take bigger bite of your wages”
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John Dixon October 29th, 2009 at 19:20
Thank you and we pray your wife is well as she can be. I would still like to take to you two and let you hear others who have overcome this dreaded disease.
Thanks again for all you do.
John Dixon
43760 58th Street West
Lancaster, CA 93536 -
This is just another reason why people are looking to move out of California. It is amazing to me how the Infamous Legislator’s manage to slip these bills through overnight while the rest of us are sleeping so that we can get to an honest decent job in the morning. It is quite honestly another reason why people are so disqusted with our Government, From the top on down. If we didn’t balance or live within our budget, do you think for one minute that the Government would bail us out? I am quite frankly fed up with the entire process. My Government has failed not only me but the people they are
suppose to represent and yet we have no say in what is done overnight by a few unscrupulous legislators who could give a Damn about those of us who are trying our best to make ends meet. The legislators screw up and we continue to pay and if all of their representatives could hear what people are saying, they would do their job in respresenting the people who put them in office. For the past 10 years I have spent the entire first 6 months of the year sitting in on legislation only to see our representatives come in 1 to 2 hours late and tell the people who are having bills heard (for or against) that they only have a few minutes to make their points and to be treated like we are ignorant stupid idiots who are actully there becasue we need to be heard and to fight for our BUSINESSES AND OUR livelihood. HOW SILLY OF US TO THINK THAT OUR REPRESENTATIVES REALLY CARE OR GIVE A DAMN ABOUT WHAT WE HAVE TO SAY.SILLY US, WE ACTUALLY THOUGHT THAT WE HAD A CHANCE AT PRESENTING OUR ISSUES. ALL WE HEARD WHEN OUR REPRESENTATIVES WERE CAMPAIGNING WAS THAT THEY REALLY CARED ABOUT OUR ISSUES AND WANTED TO MAKE OUR LIVES BETTER. HOW SILLY OF US TO THINK THAT THEY REALLY MEANT WHAT THEY SAID.I FOR ONE AM LOOKING TO CHANGE THE WHOLE SYSTEM AND THERE ARE ALOT OF MY ASSOCIATES WHO FEEL THE SAME. I WILL MOVE OUT OF THIS STATE AS SOON AS I CAN. AND WHEN I DO I WILL MOVE TO A STATE THAT ALLOWS THEIR LEGISLATORS TO ONLY CARRY 5 BILLS A YEAR AND THEY ACTUALLY STUDY THE BILLS AND CARE ABOUT THE IMPACT THEIR DECISIONS MAY HAVE ON THEIR CONSTITUENTS. -
James Mettler October 30th, 2009 at 10:12
So….you are surprised? Liberals in the legislature, both nationally and state, will spend forever to get votes, to get the power and to stay in office. They will spend more than all of your money, then come along and “borrow” more from you in any scheme they can think of. I’m only surprised someone hadn’t thought of this before. In my never to be humble opinion I think that ALL incumbents should be thrown out of office. At the very least some fairly strict term limits. Fortunately the highest office in the land is termed out at two terms.
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John Pi October 30th, 2009 at 17:19
I would like to see our fine state senator to help reduce our tax burden by proposing a pay cut for all the states elected officials and their personnel staff members to the state’s minimum wage. He should also lead by example and do it first to show others what to do. I know it will not help much but every penny helps.
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When will our legislators start doing the “right thing”? We’re all tiered of having to pay for their mess, again and again. Instead of “taxes” our wonderful legislators use “fee hikes” and other means to extract more and more money from its hard working citizens. Whatever happened to the fact that the government is supposed to be working for “us” not “us” working for the government? While the every-day Joe is struggling to pay their rent/mortgage and utility bills our government officials keep taking more of our money to give themselves pay raises and hire more $100,000.00 plus employees for meaningless departments. How about selling all the government vehicles and making government employees drive their own vehicles to and from work like the rest of us. How about decreasing “ALL” government employees pay, and retirement benefits and getting rid of all unnecessary and useless employees to fit California’s “budget”. How about focusing on getting rid of welfare, disability, and Section 8 fraud that is so wide spread that everyone I know knows at least one person committing this type of fraud right at this moment! Palmdale it littered with this fraud. California’s government needs to live within its means and stop forcing its residents to hand over their paychecks in order to provide the government endless supplies of money to do with what they want. This needs to stop!
Please State Sen. George Runner, R-Lancaster, and Assemblyman Steve Knight, R-Palmdale, continue to do the “right thing”.
Thank You. -
I am sick and tired of the government taking money from everyone and not cutting back on the things they spend it on. People do not have and unlimited amount of money to spend and neither should the government. Everyone has had to cut back and the government needs to do the same. SWtart spendoing within your mean cut out all programs that dont work and quit borrowing and passing new spending bills. No new taxes. No bills should be passed that require more money. I think everyone in office should be voted out and maybe the next group would think twice about raising taxes and spending. Get the government out back to being a government for the people.
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