And now the government is demanding more money. It’s starting here with the Idaho Unemployment Tax, which is one of the many taxes businesses are required to pay. Our unemployment tax rates have QUADRUPLED since 2008, with this year’s new rate fully 3 times higher than last year’s.
Does this make businesses want to hire more folks? Nope. And this is just the beginning. Wait until all the other taxes start piling on…NIC, city, county, state, federal.
Job creation? Don’t hold your breath.
It will be interesting to see what the local taxing entities do with their budgets this year. In the City of Coeur d’Alene, the council is not faced with an election. Will they take the full 3% to help feed their spending habits? Will they go into foregone? One thing I know is that rarely do you hear anyone speak up for the taxpayer and try to hold a line on spending. Let’s hope for the best, but if the unemployment tax is any harbinger, we’re all going to be taking a hit next year. A big hit.
Comment by Dan — January 18, 2010 @ 6:15 pm
The news organizations claim today is formally the “most depressing day of the year”. I don’t know why, for sure, but it’s Monday, it’s a gloomy, grey winter day in many parts of the country/world, and all the credit card bills from Christmas are coming due. NOT HERE in CdA! What a fabulous day! I saw smiles on faces everywhere I went today, and our visiting oldest son went for a jog on the Prairie Trail. Nice.
On the other subject, of taxes, I agree with you Dan. Now that it’s not an election year for the city council, let’s hope they will NOT take even the full 3% allowed by law, and not even contemplate any other taxes. And we can hope the County will not either because it IS an election year for them. People are not happy about taxation—just look at Massachusetts.
Comment by mary — January 18, 2010 @ 7:25 pm
Not to be petty, but I’m sure the 54 degree high helped create a lot of those smiling faces. I certainly enjoyed the few moments I got outside.
The Press article states that when times were good a few years ago the rates were dropped. That sounds a bit like having a variable insurance premium. This seems strange to me, since it’s low when could handle it and high when you can least afford it. If we’re going to have unemployment insurance, it seems to me that it should be treated as such, with steady premiums, perhaps based on a long-view rolling average.
Comment by eq72521 — January 18, 2010 @ 9:15 pm
Yes, indeed, “eq72521”, the sun and warmth were a gift to be savored today.
The letter that came with the enormously increased unemployment premium said this: “…the rapid increase in the number of people needing assistance has broken Idaho’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund.”
The way our federal government has chosen to respond to the economic crisis, with massive spending, bank bailouts and almost no tax cuts or incentives for small business, in addition to the overreaching of their socialist agenda, has made businesses fearful and uncertain, and has caused the jobless situation. Our state insurance fund is now “broken” and the only way to fix it seems to be forcing businesses to pay big time, which will probably cause more to go under and cost more jobs.
There is only one place government money can come from…the taxpayers. And only business creates a profit, which pays for everything. Without profit, nothing happens.
Comment by mary — January 18, 2010 @ 9:48 pm
I don’t think employees realize that they pay for the higher rates in the form of lower wages. The money has to come from somewhere.
Comment by Dan — January 18, 2010 @ 9:55 pm
I hope the city doesn’t discover yet another opportunity that they would define as too good to pass up without regard to the ultimate cost to the taxpayers.
Comment by Susie Snedaker — January 18, 2010 @ 10:08 pm
Well, Susie, this morning’s Press tells us that LCDC may have found such an thing. Ms.”Opportunity” Goodlaner, who by the way sees NO conflicts of interest anywhere, anytime, is considering granting tax money to a private skating rink right near her buddy Charlie Nipp’s hotel. Come on, poor Charlie lost revenues when the previous skating rink collapsed due to heavy snow last year. Of course the taxpayers should help HIM out! (I hope my sarcasm comes through on that statement!)
Comment by mary — January 19, 2010 @ 8:15 am
This project has no benefit to the public. The parking lot will never be owned by the public. Both the ice rink and Centennial Trail are non-profits, not owned by the public. Therefore the only benefit for this project is to Mr. Nipp’s hotel, which was stated in the Press article this morning.
There’s no corruption here in Coeur d’Alene. Public money isn’t being spent by the LCDC to benefit certain well-connected people in town. Nothing to see here! Move along, move along.
Comment by Dan — January 19, 2010 @ 10:36 am
You know this crap has gone on way past it’s time of needed completion.
I am going to start billing these agencies/governments for my money back. Seriously. If we pay for a “private” non profit skating rink near Charlie Nipp’s and Goodlander’s empire, I am going to do it.I want my money back or at least try to get it back. The idiots will probably cut me a check, they like giving money away. There is no way that rink will benefit me in any fashion even if they schedule “free” days. If I get my money back on the depreciated mobile home we have lived in these past years,I could afford to bear coat it and a many other things! Vile, lecherous, despicable, disgusting, repulsive, wretched, morally depraved, low lifes – that’s who they are.
Comment by Stebbijo — January 19, 2010 @ 10:42 am
As I said yesterday, if it weren’t so sad, it would be funny. Notice to Deanna, if you say so, it must be true…NOT!! Apparently Deanna compartmentalizes. Never a conflict of interest, because then she would be “unable to govern”. Talk about patronising the collective intellect. Especially because Deanna has no idea of the meaning of “compartmentalize” or “conflict of interest”. Based on voter turnout, the collective intellect is easy to patronise. Do I sound disgusted..you bet!
Send strong positive thoughts to the voters in Taxachussettes today for a Republican victory. This would turn the tide and possibly be the ultimate salvation of this country. We can but hope. However, I would be more hopeful if this election was in a less liberal state. There is some idiot who is also running strictly to divide the vote for the Republican candidate. There is nothing lower than liberal politics.
Comment by rochereau — January 19, 2010 @ 10:43 am
Well, since the vote here in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho has been severely compromised, in that our votes are essentially null and void, I think I have a case in getting my money back, if they go through with this blatantly obvious premeditated debauchery of a dog and pony show that we once knew as government.
Comment by Stebbijo — January 19, 2010 @ 11:11 am