State Budget Solutions: States need to focus on cutting spending, not Internet tax revenues

ALEXANDRIA, Va., April 29, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Bob Williams, President of State Budget Solutions (SBS), a national nonprofit organization advocating for fundamental reform of state budgets and pensions, released the following statement regarding possibility of increasing Internet sales tax revenue.

"States are hoping that taxes from Internet sales will boost their coffers, like from the Marketplace Fairness Act pending in Congress that would require companies with sales of more than $1 million to begin collecting sales and local taxes for purchases over the Internet," said Williams.

Williams added, "Lawmakers' focus on the hope of increased internet revenue is misplaced. States need to fix their spending problems now and stop hoping that the federal government will ride in like a knight in shining armor and fix all their problems. Hoping for more federal stimulus or hoping the feds will allow taxes on the Internet will not solve the budget crises the states currently face. The problem is spending, not revenue."

State Budget Solutions recommends performance based budgeting, which focuses on what taxpayers get for the money now being spent on services.

"It ensures that state government is serving its citizens as efficiently and effectively as possible," Williams said.

To read Bob Williams full bio CLICK HERE.

About State Budget Solutions

The State Budget Solutions Project is non-partisan, positive, pro-reform, proactive and anchored in fundamental-systemic solutions.  The goal is to successfully engage political journalists/bloggers, state officials and opinion leaders in a new way of thinking about state government and budgets, fundamental reforms, transparency and accountability.  Sharing studies and articles, data sets, anecdotes, and compelling narrative about what is happening in state and local budgets, the State Budget Solutions Project presents and disseminates information about every aspect of coming fiscal and economic disasters and, more importantly, highlights fundamental reforms to avoid them.

Check out StateBudgetSolutions.org for more information.

SOURCE State Budget Solutions