DV Journal

Every April, Pennsylvanians are reminded of their crushing tax burden—one of the highest in the nation. And a growing number of Pennsylvanians have had enough. A new poll by the Commonwealth Foundation finds more than four-in-ten Pennsylvanians have either thought about leaving the state or know someone who has thoughts about leaving or has already left. They point to lower cost of living, better jobs and opportunities, and lower taxes among the top reasons for leaving.

As state lawmakers discuss the next state budget, they need to put fiscal safeguards in place to restore Pennsylvania as an attractive place to live and work.

According to the poll, almost 70 percent of Pennsylvanians think their taxes are too high—and they’re not wrong. Between property, sales, excise, and income taxes, Pennsylvania has the fourth-highest tax rates in the United States, 30 percent higher than the national average. The average Pennsylvania resident must surrender $14 to the state in various taxes for every $100 they earn—on top of the $11,000 paid by the average U.S. household in federal income taxes each year. The state also has the third-highest gas tax, following only California and Illinois.

Unfortunately, Pennsylvania’s tax climate isn’t much better for businesses.

Pennsylvania has an overall rank of 33 in the Tax Foundation’s 2023 State Business Tax Climate Index, with 50 being the worst. Another report ranks Pennsylvania as the seventh-worst state in which to start a new business.

Pennsylvanians recognize the challenges businesses face and hold an overall dim outlook on economic opportunity in the state. The poll found only one-in-ten respondents believe Pennsylvania is better for businesses than it was ten years ago—with the majority saying that the state is worse. Nearly two-thirds of Pennsylvanians think that economic conditions in Pennsylvania are getting worse, not better.

The data is clear—high taxes and other state barriers make Pennsylvania an expensive, and difficult, place to live or start a business. Unsurprisingly, people are fed up and moving to states with friendlier economic climates.

From July 2021 to July 2022, Pennsylvania lost nearly 40,000 residents to other states, the eighth-largest population loss from domestic migration within that timeframe in the United States. This is not an outlier or a new problem. Every year since 2010, except for one, the commonwealth experienced a net loss in domestic migration.

Then there are also the Pennsylvanians that haven’t left yet but want to. The poll found that it’s Pennsylvanians between 18 and 44—our workforce and taxpayers—that most want to leave. They’re looking to Florida, Texas, and South Carolina as top destinations for relocation, the same states they listed as having better economic outlooks.

Gov. Josh Shapiro needs to turn things around, but his latest budget proposal doesn’t do that.

Pennsylvania is barreling toward a major structural deficit over the next few years. But Shapiro’s budget proposal spends almost $2.9 billion more than ongoing revenue, exacerbating this deficit and making future tax increases more likely. The budget also excludes the business tax reductions Shapiro campaigned on—specifically, his promise to lower the corporate net income tax (CNIT) from 9.99 to 4 percent by 2025.

Pennsylvanians need a reasonable budget and new fiscal safeguards to protect them from excessive overspending and future tax hikes.

A first step is for lawmakers to pass the Taxpayer Protection Act (TPA), a constitutional amendment that would tie state spending growth to inflation and population growth. TPA would break the cycle of the commonwealth overspending in good economic times and raising taxes in the aftermath of recessions. A similar reform has had immense success in Colorado, ensuring that its state spending never outpaces taxpayers’ ability to pay the bill.

If this safeguard had been put into place since 2003, Pennsylvania taxpayers would have saved nearly $20,000 in taxes per family of four over the last two decades.

Pennsylvanians have had enough of high taxes and are increasingly looking to other states, but there’s still an opportunity to reverse these trends.

State lawmakers need to expedite CNIT reductions and stem future tax increases by restraining spending now. Easing the tax burden will help Pennsylvania stem the exodus and become an attractive destination for families and businesses.

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Despite most Montgomery County residents sending Democrats to Harrisburg and Congress, 147th House District voters elected Republican Donna Scheuren in 2022.

“No doubt the 147th House District is unique, as it is a district completely within the confines of Montgomery County that chose a Republican to represent it,” said Scheuren. “I believe the voices of all residents need to be heard, whether those beliefs are from the left, the right, or the center.”

“I feel my responsibility is great,” Scheuren told Delaware Valley Journal. “I am honored to have been elected on the values and principles that I aspire to, and I know those shared values of good schools, low taxes, safe communities, opportunity, and decent paying jobs are held by the majority of the voters in the 147th district.”

Donna and Dave Scheuren

The 147th District consists of part of Montgomery County consisting of the Townships of Douglass, Franconia (part), Lower Frederick, Lower Salford, New Hanover, Upper Frederick, Upper Pottsgrove and Upper Salford.

It was formerly represented by GOP Rep. Tracy Pennycuick, now a state senator.

Scheuren served on the Souderton Area School Board where she chaired the finance committee, and touted her 30 years of business experience in her campaign.

“I have always fought for the best interests of the people,” said Scheuren. “As a small business owner, I’ve created jobs and know the pressures of meeting payroll. As a manufacturer’s rep, I’ve worked every day to grow or save jobs for thousands of employees in factories and manufacturing plants across the country.”

She has worked to “control and cut costs, negotiate contracts, grow revenue, improve processes, invest in people, and deliver quality outcomes in manufactured goods and services, or the total life experience of a student’s education.”

“I’ve been hearing both sides of an issue for most of my adult life and making the tough decisions that are in the best interest of all stakeholders – whether (they are) are business owners, factory workers or the consumer of finished goods, or local tax-paying residents, parents, staff, and students,” she said. “For in these volatile and challenging times, the voters of the 147th need to know they elected a leader with the qualified experience to serve on day one and should feel confident knowing that I will always work to implement the district’s legislative priorities.”

As the legislative session gets underway, Scheuren said she hopes to promote jobs, technical education, voter ID, and reduce taxes and crime.

“We must continue to reduce taxes and burdensome regulations, along with waste, abuse, and fraud, for our state to thrive and be an economic leader,” she said. “Building that trust also includes acknowledging the wishes of more than 70 percent of voters across the country that support Voter ID to restore confidence in our electoral process. Pennsylvania voters deserve to see that question on the May primary ballot.

And, “there is nothing more fundamental than a free and safe society, yet with crime on the rise in our cities and suburbs, residents are finding themselves more at risk. I fully support the law enforcement community and the training, technological advancements, and funding necessary to keep our businesses, schools, and homes safe from violence,” said Scheuren.

Asked why she decided to run, Scheuren said, “I have always been passionate about politics and felt a calling to serve. Once I saw the widespread effects of our state and nation being shut down by COVID, it was clear that common-sense solutions were needed in many aspects of government.”

Scheuren and her husband, Dave Scheuren, live in Lower Salford, where he serves as a township supervisor. In their free time, they enjoy cheering for Penn State.

“With generations of Scheuren family members graduating from Penn State, we are a PSU football family with the tailgating RV to prove it,” Scheuren said. “I enjoy interior design and decorating throughout the year for the change of season. I relish, however, planning and hosting parties, events, community gatherings, and all functions that help to bring family, friends, neighbors, and colleagues together. Life is short and meant to be celebrated.”

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There is a group of people who are against the sale of the Towamencin sewer system.

They are promoting a complete change in our form of government, hoping they will be able to change how this decision was made.

While I understand that not everyone agrees with all decisions made by local government, residents should be aware of some of the negatives of Home Rule.

Second Class Townships, such as Towamencin, have limits on taxing set by Pennsylvania code. However, it is my understanding that home-rule municipalities are only subject to a few limitations on the rates of taxation imposed upon residents including earned income taxes. In Pennsylvania, the highest personal earned income tax rate municipalities have home rule charters. Home Rule also allows greater influence by private interest groups seeking to influence public policy.

Residents should also be aware of the law and the guidance put out by the Department of Community and Economic Development in 2020. If the referendum passes it would create a Government Study Commission. There would then have to be public hearings as well as multiple Commission meetings, the drafting of a new charter, and a complete report, followed by a two-month period of public review. This would be remarkably like a constitutional convention.

Completely changing our form of government is not the answer. If residents do not like the decisions made, they can vote for change by electing new supervisors.

Those of us who are running under “Towamencin Residents United Serving Towamencin” (TRUST) are committed to keeping Towamencin Township a wonderful place to live, work and raise a family, especially now during these uncertain times.

Douglas Kile, Connie Brown, Jeffrey K Baer, Richard Todd Fisher, Amy Tarlo, Michael E. Main, and Nancy J. Becker are running for the Government Study Commission under the Township Residents United Serving Towamencin (“TRUST”), to ensure all voices are heard and all issues addressed. We are not motivated by one political issue and will take an honest look at the charter to ensure that any changes made are best for the long-term well-being of Towamencin and all its residents.

When you vote on November 8, remember why you moved to Towamencin or continue to stay here. We have amazing open spaces, parks, farms, and wonderful housing communities.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: For another view, see “McGarrigle: Why Voters Should Vote for Republicans.”

On Tuesday, November 8, Americans will once again head to the polls to exercise one of our most important rights – the right to vote. This year, however, the stakes are higher than they have ever been before as the differences between candidates go beyond policy.

Rather, we are choosing between those who believe in truth, democracy, and freedom and those who embrace dangerous election lies, hateful rhetoric, and political violence. The best way to protect our democracy, keep the government out of our bedrooms and doctors’ offices, and stop the spread of MAGA extremism is to vote for Democrats up and down the ballot.

It should come as no surprise that in normal election cycles, I also strongly believe that voting for Democrats is the best decision. Ordinarily, that is for policy reasons. But there is nothing ordinary about this year. We have one party – the Republican Party – that has been taken over by far-right extremists, including some calling for violence against our elected officials and institutions.

The Republicans are not even pretending to appeal to moderates anymore. Their platform calls for, among other things, a national ban on abortion; support for total and absolute gun rights; rejection of sound climate science and backward-looking energy policies that prop up the fossil fuel industry; drastic cuts and changes to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid relied on by millions of citizens; elimination of the Affordable Care Act which would lead to loss of insurance and coverage for pre-existing conditions for millions of Americans; and, of course, more tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans and corporations, forcing the tax burden down onto middle-class Americans and shockingly, even the poorest among us.

Moreover, we have the continued assault on our electoral system based on the “big lie” created by former President Donald Trump and his allies. We are learning every day just how deep and terrifying this assault really is. Across the country, Republicans are trying to take over election boards, county commissions, city councils, and school boards to force their dangerous view of the world on the rest of us.

We are seeing these forces at work right here in Pennsylvania where the Republican candidate for governor, Doug Mastriano, has made controlling elections, through his power to appoint the secretary of state and certify voting machines, a central tenet of his campaign. He supports a complete ban on abortion, with no exceptions for rape, incest, or even the health of the mother, and even supports charging a woman who had an abortion with murder.

His historically extreme education policy would cut public education funding by half and he has vowed to turn Pennsylvania into the Florida of the North. No, thank you. Beyond Harrisburg, our U.S. Senate and House races are also vital for protecting our democracy. If Republicans take control of the U.S. House and Senate all progress stops in terms of fighting inflation, global warming, women’s rights, common-sense gun control, civil rights, and protecting our elections.

That’s why we here in Chester County need to throw our support behind Democratic candidates at all levels, from our state legislature, to governor, to the House of Representatives, to the U.S. Senate. Our very democracy is on the ballot in November and there is only one party intent on preserving it, for everyone.

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Democrat Josh Shapiro promises to cut taxes if elected governor.

Specifically, Shapiro says he would cut the cellphone tax, send $250 gas tax rebates to car owners, and expand the property tax and rent rebate program. Both Shapiro and his Republican opponent, state Sen. Doug Mastriano, agree the state’s corporate taxes  — the second highest in the country — should be reduced to attract businesses and jobs.

But Shapiro had a record of raising taxes when he served as a Montgomery County commissioner, despite promising voters during the campaign that he would not.

Shapiro voted to raise Montgomery County property taxes in 2015 and 2016 by a total of 21 percent. In 2015, Shapiro had just been re-elected as commissioner and in 2016, he had been elected as attorney general and was leaving his county post when he voted to again raise taxes.

Before being elected county commissioner, Shapiro pledged not to raise taxes.

In 2016, Joe Gale, the minority Republican Commissioner, called the tax increases “a money grab.”

Gale pointed out that in addition to hiking property taxes, Shapiro and Commissioner Val Arkoosh also voted to increase health inspection fees on businesses by 2 percent over three consecutive years. And Shapiro voted to increase the vehicle registration fees for county car and truck owners. The two Democratic commissioners also voted to increase the hotel tax by 100 percent. Shapiro voted to institute a separate community college levy, having the taxpayers pay for it separately and removing the county’s contribution to the college from the general fund, freeing up $22 million, said Gale.

“Josh Shapiro campaigned for county commissioner on a no-tax pledge, yet within weeks of being re-elected commissioner, Shapiro voted to increase taxes by 10 percent,” Gale said at the time. “Just a few weeks after being elected to his new position (attorney general), he’s increased taxes by 11 percent.”

Gale said, “There’s a pattern here. You elect Josh Shapiro on a Tuesday and the next week you’re hit with a double-digit tax increase…A 21 percent tax increase over the course of two years is outrageous.”

Skippack resident Mike Marino, a former Montgomery County Commissioners chair, said Shapiro “imposed an assessment as a contribution to Montgomery County Community College. It appears on my county bill of over $100 each year. It was a sneaking way of raising your taxes without calling it a tax. He is a typical Democrat that constantly raises taxes and then states that he does not. Just another attempt to deceive the public. Exactly the same tricks as Joe Biden.”

For his part, Shapiro tweeted on June 22, “As county commissioner, I inherited a deficit – so I got to work. I balanced our budget, and by the end of my term, Montgomery County was back on track to financial stability. Experience matters.”

Shapiro’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment about Shapiro’s record on taxes.

Gale, who had also run for governor but lost to Mastriano in a crowded Republican primary, added, “Josh Shapiro is, and has always been, a tax and spend liberal who has never seen a money grab he didn’t like. Once elected governor, he will grow the size of government and the already bloated state budget.”

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President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act — now being called the “Climate, Healthcare, and Taxes Act” by some — on Tuesday, drawing mixed reactions. Whether it would help or hurt Americans depended on party affiliation.

The mammoth $739 bill will impose a minimum of 15 percent in corporate taxes and a 1 percent excise tax on stock buybacks. It will also unleash 87,000 new IRS agents, cap insulin costs for Medicare recipients, and shovel billions in tax subsidies to “green” projects.

“Hide your wallet! The left’s behemoth tax hike and spending law will do nothing to help struggling Americans,” said Brooke Rollins, president and CEO of America First Policy Institute. “It will only make a bad situation worse. Americans deserve prosperity, economic growth, and energy independence — and that’s exactly what they aren’t getting from the Biden administration. Now, out-of-touch liberals in Washington, D.C. are delivering tax hikes, more reckless spending, and an army of 87,000 IRS bureaucrats to grab more from families who have less. Recently, 369 economists signed a letter organized by AFPI that expresses how this bill will worsen inflation.”

Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) released this statement when the Senate passed the bill. “Last year, Democrats jammed through trillions of dollars in reckless spending that fueled the worst inflation in 40 years. Now, Democrats insist on pouring fuel on the fire with another partisan tax-and-spending spree that will only further exacerbate a recession we’re already likely in.

“To fund new ‘green’ corporate welfare and give Obamacare subsidies to wealthy Americans, this legislation forces short-sighted tax hikes on American businesses and imposes innovation-crippling price controls on life-saving medicines. And contrary to the bill’s name, non-partisan analysts have confirmed that it does nothing to alleviate the inflation tax Americans are feeling every day,” said Toomey.

Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-Montgomery) tweeted after the House approved the proposal, “We’ve passed the Inflation Reduction Act! For families, seniors, and our future. That’ll lower health care costs, cut prescription drug prices, including capping Medicare insulin at $35 — and the largest investment in our climate. We all should be proud of this work.”

After voting for the bill, Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Delaware/Philadelphia) said, “The Inflation Reduction Act is a historic victory for Pennsylvania families and for our planet: delivering the investments we need to keep down health care costs, reinvigorate American manufacturing, and drive our transition to a clean energy economy. Importantly, the bill is fully paid for by ensuring that corporations can’t dodge their taxes – while ensuring that not one middle-class Pennsylvanian or small business pays a cent more in taxes. This legislation is a monumental step forward in House Democrats’ fight to build a fairer, cleaner economy, as we remain committed to putting People Over Politics: lowering costs, creating better-paying jobs, and building safer communities for all.”

Dave Galluch, the Republican running against Scanlon, said, “Despite its name, the bill does little for working families. Even Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) has said the bill ‘will, in fact, have a minimal impact on inflation.’ That sentiment is confirmed by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). So, we must ask – how does spending an additional $700 billion, raising taxes on working families, and hiring more IRS agents bring down inflation? Without mentioning spiraling costs for families, my opponent Mary Gay Scanlon celebrates this bill as the ‘the largest-ever federal effort on climate change.’ The legislation primarily consists of subsidies for green technology like solar panels and electric vehicles. Yet the average cost of installation for solar panels is nearly $20,000. The $4,000 and $7,500 tax credits for used and new electric vehicles will do little to reduce a current average price of roughly $66,000.

“This bill does nothing to help those struggling in the Fifth Congressional District now. It is another example of failed, out-of-touch leadership we must move on from this November,” Galluch said.

Guy Ciarrocchi, the Republican running for Congress against Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Chester) said, “The number one issue for everyone is Inflation. That’s why I would have been an emphatic “No” vote on Biden’s so-called ‘Inflation Reduction Act.’ From Wharton to CBS, analysts have stated that the spending bill won’t lower inflation—in fact, it might make inflation worse.

“What we need is $2 gas; yet, Houlahan gives us 87,000 more IRS agents, who will harass small businesses and families. She won’t help us; so, I’m running to fix this mess,” he said.

But Democrat National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison said, “President Biden and Democrats have delivered – and today, the American people won and the special interests lost. Today, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law, taking the action the American people are looking for to lower the costs of prescription drugs, energy, and health care. It will also reduce the deficit — helping fight inflation. On top of that, this bill will take aggressive action to fight the climate crisis that will create jobs and increase our energy security.”

Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Bucks) said on Facebook before the bill passing the House: “The reconciliation bill coming to the House floor tomorrow adds $80 billion to the Internal Revenue Service – nearly six times the agency’s current annual budget – and adds 87,000 new IRS enforcement personnel to pursue taxpayers, including the middle class.

“Wouldn’t we be better off hiring 87,000 new school resource officers and police officers to keep our schools and our communities safe?” Fitzpatrick asked.

American Petroleum Institute (API) President and CEO Mike Sommers said, “While the Inflation Reduction Act takes important steps toward new oil and gas leasing and investments in carbon capture and storage, it falls well short of addressing America’s long-term energy needs and further discourages needed investment in oil and gas. API shares the goal of addressing climate change, as evidenced in the policies we support and in the actions that our industry is taking every day. However, the considerable tax increases are simply the wrong policies at the wrong time.

“From a new corporate minimum tax to an $11.7 billion tax on crude oil and petroleum products to a new natural gas tax, this legislation imposes additional costs on American families and businesses at a time when policymakers should be looking for solutions to provide relief.

“The bill also fails to address permitting reform, which is essential to effectively delivering affordable, reliable energy to consumers in a growing economy,” said Sommers.

“Without a comprehensive plan for critical investment in American oil and natural gas and associated infrastructure, which provide nearly 70 percent of our country’s energy needs, the American people will continue to bear the brunt of short-sighted policies in Washington,” he said.

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The state’s treasurer and tax experts are worried that a new Democrat-backed deal might be Uncle Sam’s way of weaseling into the wallets of more Pennsylvanians after lawmakers passed a massive reconciliation bill that would boost the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) budget by $80 billion over the next decade.

The Senate passed the bill along party lines with Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie, moving it a step closer to a House vote. All of the Democrats in Pennsylvania’s delegation, including Reps. Chrissy Houlahan, Mary Gay Scanlon, and Susan Wild are expected to vote for the $739 billion spending deal.

If signed into law by President Joe Biden, it would allocate more than half of the new IRS funding, $45.6 billion, toward beefing up enforcement by hiring about 87,000 new agents, roughly doubling the size of the tax agency.

Critics complained only a fraction of the new investment would go toward processing return backlogs and enhancing customer services at an agency that is notoriously difficult to reach.

“Giving the Internal Revenue Service a massive $80 billion increase should send shivers down the spines of small business owners and the American middle-class,” Republican State Treasurer Stacy Garrity told DVJournal. “Everyone should pay the taxes they owe, but this is a startling overreach by the federal government. Small businesses are the heart of our economy, and as we continue to recover from the pandemic and face the effects of super-charged inflation, hitting them with teams of IRS auditors is absolutely the wrong thing to do.”

The Congressional Budget Office estimates the investment is projected to haul in $203.7 billion in revenue from 2022 to 2031.

Tax attorneys echoed the state treasurer’s concerns, fearing everyday taxpayers would bear the brunt of increased enforcement efforts rather than large corporations and wealthy Americans.

They pointed out training new agents takes between six months and a year before they would be ready to receive low-level enforcement cases likely worth thousands — rather than millions — of dollars.

“This is horrible. This is the worst type of legislation, the worst spending bill yet,” tax lawyer Richard Booker said. “The Democrats have outdone themselves.”

IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig, looking to assuage GOP concerns, wrote to lawmakers that the cash infusion would “absolutely not [be] about increasing audit scrutiny on small businesses or middle-income Americans.”

But critics said it was hard to take Rettig at his word and accused Democrats of using the bill as a “revenue generator” to give Americans a false sense that they are interested in addressing the issue of inflation ahead of the midterm elections.

“I think he’s lying,” Booker said. “He knows they wouldn’t have asked for it unless they knew what they’re going to do with it.”

For example, the IRS was caught targeting conservatives during the lead-up to the 2012 presidential election. The Obama IRS official who admitted the agency’s misbehavior, Lois Lerner, was allowed to retire with a full pension and the agency later destroyed materials related to the scandal that were under subpoena.

Also last year, the leftwing news site Pro Publica reported details from what it described as a “trove” of private tax returns it had obtained of some of America’s wealthiest citizens—15 years worth. Leaking those private, personal documents is a felony, yet tens of thousands of pages were delivered to the liberal media.

The IRS said in its 2021 annual report it identified about $2.2 billion in tax fraud and initiated more than 1,300 investigations into allegations of tax-related crimes, recommending 850 of those cases for criminal prosecution.

Those numbers are a drop in the bucket, experts said, as IRS audits plunged by 44 percent between fiscal years 2015 and 2019, with the biggest declines among the wealthy, CNBC reported, citing a 2021 report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. Audit rates for Americans making $5 million or more dropped to about 2 percent in 2019, down from 16 percent in 2010, the outlet reported.

In Pennsylvania, the number of state-led audits and tax-related prosecutions was even lower between fiscal years 2017 and 2022. The state Department of Revenue reported 10,651 field audits for that time frame and only 68 prosecutions for the same period.

State officials brought no tax crime cases against anyone in 2020 partly because of widespread government shutdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and only seven cases last year, a department spokesman said,

Gregory M. McCauley, who runs his own tax firm in Chadds Ford, said the IRS historically has targeted tax protestors, along with individuals and companies that will make “newspaper splashes.”

He mentioned the case of the Ocean City Boardwalk pizza chain, Manco & Manco as an example, saying his office received calls from other frightened pizza-shop owners after the feds indicted Charles Bangle for tax evasion.

Bangle was sentenced to 15 months in prison in 2017 after prosecutors failed to report more than $263,000 in income and avoided paying more than $91,00 in taxes.

“They go after big numbers,” McCauley said. “After that case, we got calls from 10 or 15 pizza places who said, ‘We need to talk.’ It’s done for the deterrent effect. They’re looking for a poster child, someone who is going to cause people to say, ‘I need to change my ways.’”

Veteran GOP communications professional Patrick Hynes tweeted, “Replace ‘FBI’ with ‘IRS’ and replace ‘Trump’ with ‘Trump voters’ and you get the gist of the reconciliation bill and those 87,000 new enforcement agents.”

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All 50 Democratic senators voted in lockstep to raise taxes in a recession, increase spending and corporate welfare during runaway inflation, and take $80 billion from American taxpayers to hire 87,000 more IRS agents tasked with squeezing small-business men and women.

More IRS agents — the IRS itself tells us — will allow for 50 percent more audits of small businesses. Why? The IRS acknowledges it picks up the phone only between 10 percent and 20 percent of the time when you call. But the Inflation Reduction Act will swell the number of IRS auditors. In fact, the legislation shovels 14 times more money for “enforcement” — audits — than it does for “taxpayer services” — such as answering the phone.

The IRS acknowledged that 53 percent of its employees never set foot in an office. They “work” from home. Not answering your phone calls. The other 47 percent of IRS staff? How often do they come to work? The IRS chief told Congress that most of the remainder work in a “blended capacity” where they go into the office occasionally.

By voting to supersize the IRS, Democrats are directly filling their own campaign war chests. You see, the IRS union is a major funder of the Democratic Party.

In fact, 100 percent of the union’s PAC donations go to Democratic Party committees. The IRS union is conveniently “investing” in Senate Democrats in 2022 battleground election contests. In addition to the $30,000 donation to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the union gave $10,000 to Sen. Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire and $5,000 to Raphael Warnock of Georgia. It gave much to the very senators who just voted for this bill.

More IRS agents, more union dues and more money for Democratic politicians.

Why raise taxes now? Even Barack Obama knows it is a bad idea to raise taxes in a recession. He said: “The last thing you want to do is raise taxes in a recession.”

Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., was supposed to be the “moderate” that would stop the reckless tax and spending spree. Back in 2010 when he was asking West Virginians to send him to Washington, he said, “I don’t think during a time of recession you mess with any of the taxes, or increase any taxes.”

Manchin looked into the camera and said, “I can’t look the people of West Virginia in the eye and ask them to pay a penny more until I know we’re running this government efficiently.”

Energy prices are far above where they were when Joe Biden was sworn in due to his anti-energy policies. Now Democrats are advancing this bill with three different taxes that will increase energy costs. It raises taxes on oil, natural gas production and coal. These taxes will hit Americans every time they fill their gas tanks or pay their utility bills.

Biden and the Democrats named their legislation “The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.” Why? Only a year ago, Biden told us there was no inflation. It was transitory. It would be over by (last) December. It was caused by Vladimir Putin. Or greedy business people. Why did everyone wait to get greedy until the Democrats won the House, Senate and presidency?

Or might it be the spend and spend-and-inflate policies Biden signed into law?

By the way, even Bernie Sanders acknowledged the Democratic bill — “the so-called Inflation Reduction Act” (his words) — will have a “minimal impact” on inflation.

Of the $330 billion in new taxes put on businesses, we know that historically 70 percent of the corporate income tax is paid by workers in lower wages and employment. And 30 percent is paid by consumers paying higher prices to cover the cost of those taxes.

Taxes are a cost of any business. American businesses pay the wages of workers, the cost of raw materials, and the cost of regulations and taxes.

America wants to compete on lower taxes and regulations: not lower wages.

And what will all these tax dollars pay for? Well, they are spending billions for “environmental justice,” which includes paying people to walk around in cities and identify “gaps in tree canopy coverage.”

That is a lot of walking around money for somebody. One could, for free, look at Google photos of any American city and find how many trees there are. For free.

The Democratic spending bill also provides billions for well-to-do Americans to buy expensive $80,000 electric vehicles. There are billions in more subsidies for Obamacare even for those making $300,000 per year. Obamacare is so good you have to subsidize people to use it.

The bill raises taxes on America’s manufacturing base. Raises taxes on energy. More taxes on businesses will reduce the value of your life savings in an IRA or 401(k) or pension. More money for the IRS. Lots of cash to be handed out in pork barrel spending.

Isn’t that how we got into this mess?

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Philadelphians and suburbanites are getting a taste of tax relief after Philadelphia passed a $5.8 billion spending plan last week that went into effect July 1.

The deal, hailed by Councilman Allan Domb as “truly monumental,” is about $500 million more than last year’s spending plan, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

It includes $30 million in additional allocations for the police department as part of Mayor Jim Kenney’s push to get the city’s record crime surge under control.”

The budget also contains modest tax relief for nearly 1.6 million city residents and thousands of others who commute to Philadelphia for work.

Lawmakers cut city wage and business taxes by small margins. The wage tax, a controversial issue among residents and commuters alike, dropped from 3.83 percent to 3.79 percent for city residents and from 3.448 percent to 3.44 percent for people working in Philadelphia but living outside city limits, officials confirmed.

The business income and receipts tax was also lowered modestly, from 6.2 percent to 5.99 percent, which Domb said is the first time since 1988 that figure is under 6 percent.

Domb, who pushed forward a bill last year that would have reduced the city wage tax by 2 percent over 15 years, played a key role in negotiations that led to the reductions. He said the city must consider the interests of commuters who make up about 40 percent of the city’s working base.

“The government is recognizing how important suburbanites are to the economy of Philadelphia. Suburbs don’t exist without the ‘urb,’” Domb told DVJournal. “We have to be strong so the suburbs are strong. When we’re strong, the suburbs are strong. And when the suburbs are strong, it helps the city.”

The wage tax reduction means residents making between $50,000 to $100,000 a year will see between roughly $25 to $50 more in take-home pay this year, according to Axios and city officials.

Savings for non-residents amounts to even less, at about $4 annually for those making $50,000.

The wage tax is the city’s biggest revenue generator, at about $2 billion for the last fiscal year, officials said. About $700 million of that amount comes from people like Daniel Ceisler, an attorney at Saltz, Mongeluzzi & Bendesky in Philadelphia’s downtown district who commutes from Bristol Township.

Ceisler is one of the few people who doesn’t really gripe about the city wage tax, which reduces his paychecks by about $100.

Commuters effectively are being double-billed by the city and their own municipalities, Ceisler said. There are also people who live in the city but work in places like New York, with its own separate wage tax, meaning those people shell out for both.

Philadelphia’s website lays out scenarios when nonresidents are exempt from paying the wage tax if employers require them to “perform a job” outside of Philadelphia.

Those living outside the city but voluntarily working from home are not immune from the tax.

However insignificant to his bottom line, Ceisler said the reduction was “better than nothing,” especially if it makes Philadelphia safer.

“I don’t want anyone to think that I’m the only one in the world who loves paying taxes, but the city needs it now more than ever,” Ceisler said. “I see a city that’s struggling in a lot of ways.”

Like many who live or work in the city, he said a historic crime wave that hit the city during the pandemic has made him and others feel less at ease walking the streets.

“The shift you’re seeing (is) more crime and more brazen crime, particularly in areas where you didn’t use to see it,” Ceisler said. “There’s no part of the city that’s immune to violent crime.”

Under this year’s spending plan, the police department saw its annual budget boosted by about $30 million, to about $800 million, a figure the Inquirer reported is the most of any city agency.

The increase comes two years after the police budget was frozen following widespread civil unrest and protests that broke out across the country over police brutality following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Since then, the city has invested more than $150 million into anti-violence programs.

Kenney proposed about $23 million more for police to cover union-based salary increases and upgrades for office technology. The city council added another $6.2  million on top of that, according to The Inquirer.

About $5 million was set aside for the city’s forensic lab and $250,000 for recruitment amid a nationwide shortage of police recruits.

The money is needed as not every one of the city’s 6,300 sworn officers is equipped with a cell phone, a potential public safety hazard, Domb said.

“That’s pretty basic,” said Domb, who is exploring running for mayor with the Democratic primary less than a year away. “No one will argue that the No. 1 issue in the city is public safety. I am heartbroken over what’s going on. I know we can do better.”

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