Okla-homey
7/29/2009, 07:50 AM
Broke states are coming up with innovative ways to raise money. Strip clubs in Georgia dodged the tax bullet.
CNN-This year, lawmakers in Georgia turned not to pot but to poles as a possible source of additional revenue.
Republican state Sen. Jack Murphy's proposed "pole tax" would have charged patrons of strip clubs a $5 entrance fee. The bill was not approved.
Nineteen states have explored gambling-related proposals as ways balance their 2010 budgets, according to the National Council of State Legislatures.
In Alabama, lawmakers considered bringing more bingo games to the state and legalizing slot machines, but the measure was not approved.
Delaware's Democratic Gov. Jack Markell signed legislation creating a sports lottery that legalizes single-game betting. Four professional sports leagues and the NCAA have filed a lawsuit over plans for the lottery, fearing that it threatens the integrity of the games.
"Basically, what we are dealing with is a larger issue here, which states have been grappling now for a few years, that is the shift in our economy away from manufacturing economy to a service-based economy," CanagaRetna said. He noted that when sales tax doesn't apply, states aren't able to capture the economic activity.
Here are a few of the more interesting ways states are trying to conserve -- and create -- some extra funds:
- In Wisconsin, Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle's fiscal year 2010 budget triples the price of an elk hunting license, even though his state has no elk hunting season. Doyle also proposed a fee on for each animal slaughtered, ranging from a penny per chicken to 14 cents per pig, but that provision was shot down.
- In his 2009 budget, New York Gov. David Paterson proposed a "fat tax" that would have tacked an 18-percent tax on sugary beverages. That tax -- along with proposed taxes on manicures, health clubs and bowling -- was nixed. Next door in New Jersey, however, residents are subject to a sales tax on health club memberships.
- Some school districts in Utah have opted to shorten their school years by a few days or increase class sizes, with hopes of saving millions.
- In Virginia, the state House and Senate voted to increase inmates' daily rent by 500 percent, from $1 to $5. Democratic Gov. Tim Kaine vetoed the bill in May, requesting that the fee be capped at $3.
- In Kentucky, new legislation puts a tax on cell phone ring tones.
CNN-This year, lawmakers in Georgia turned not to pot but to poles as a possible source of additional revenue.
Republican state Sen. Jack Murphy's proposed "pole tax" would have charged patrons of strip clubs a $5 entrance fee. The bill was not approved.
Nineteen states have explored gambling-related proposals as ways balance their 2010 budgets, according to the National Council of State Legislatures.
In Alabama, lawmakers considered bringing more bingo games to the state and legalizing slot machines, but the measure was not approved.
Delaware's Democratic Gov. Jack Markell signed legislation creating a sports lottery that legalizes single-game betting. Four professional sports leagues and the NCAA have filed a lawsuit over plans for the lottery, fearing that it threatens the integrity of the games.
"Basically, what we are dealing with is a larger issue here, which states have been grappling now for a few years, that is the shift in our economy away from manufacturing economy to a service-based economy," CanagaRetna said. He noted that when sales tax doesn't apply, states aren't able to capture the economic activity.
Here are a few of the more interesting ways states are trying to conserve -- and create -- some extra funds:
- In Wisconsin, Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle's fiscal year 2010 budget triples the price of an elk hunting license, even though his state has no elk hunting season. Doyle also proposed a fee on for each animal slaughtered, ranging from a penny per chicken to 14 cents per pig, but that provision was shot down.
- In his 2009 budget, New York Gov. David Paterson proposed a "fat tax" that would have tacked an 18-percent tax on sugary beverages. That tax -- along with proposed taxes on manicures, health clubs and bowling -- was nixed. Next door in New Jersey, however, residents are subject to a sales tax on health club memberships.
- Some school districts in Utah have opted to shorten their school years by a few days or increase class sizes, with hopes of saving millions.
- In Virginia, the state House and Senate voted to increase inmates' daily rent by 500 percent, from $1 to $5. Democratic Gov. Tim Kaine vetoed the bill in May, requesting that the fee be capped at $3.
- In Kentucky, new legislation puts a tax on cell phone ring tones.