Tax official opts to retire after memo

Macdonald said the memo was just one reason, but not the only reason, he decided rather quickly to retire. Tax Commission spokesman Charles Roberts said Macdonald notified the commission last Thursday he was taking early retirement and left on Friday.

Macdonald, 58, said he would have liked to work a few more years, but the atmosphere at the commission — "taking disciplinary action against me for answering" lawmakers' questions — combined with HB213, a post-retirement health-care law that took effect Friday, were reasons enough to leave.

HB213 has led hundreds of veteran state workers to take early retirement. Originally, workers had to retire by Dec. 31 to be able to convert unused sick leave into post-retirement monthly health insurance premiums. Some longtime workers would lose five, six, even 10 years of retirement health-care insurance in the change — and so they left.

But Macdonald didn't put in his retirement papers before the Dec. 31 deadline, which was extended to last Friday by a Utah Supreme Court stay as the high court ruled on the law. Justices upheld the 2005 law. Macdonald only decided after the 2006 Legislature and the memo to leave.

Under Huntsman's proposal, nicknamed "H3," the top personal income tax rate of 7 percent would be lowered to 4.9 percent and several current deductions and exemptions would be removed, including the current senior citizen retirement exemption. Overall, "H3" is a $70 million tax cut.

Huntsman and his top aides say even though some people would lose some exemptions because of the lowering of the rate and extensions of family credits, nearly all Utah taxpayers will get a tax cut in the change. Even those with a tax hike will only see increases of $10, $20 or so, the experts say.

Huntsman spokesman and deputy chief of staff Mike Mower said he and no one else in Huntsman's office knew anything about the memo, and "we never suggested that it be sent" to Macdonald and his professional staff. Mower said Macdonald's retirement was a surprise to the governor's office and a loss to the state.

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