Walker's proposal would need legislative approval to take effect, and she'll only be in office a few more weeks. Lawmakers were not invited to join the governor's task force on tax reform. Several said Monday the exclusion could doom the proposal.

Gov.-elect Jon Huntsman Jr., who has adopted tax reform as his top priority and key to his economic development effort, declined Monday to comment directly on the proposed changes and cancelled a planned press conference on the topic.

"Tax reform is critical to Utah," Huntsman said in a statement. "As we work to revitalize the economy, we need to revamp our outdated tax codes and close the loopholes of the past."

The new governor is expected to spend some time sorting out what lawmakers would be willing to consider when the 2005 Legislature convenes in mid-January before he responds to Walker's proposal.

Reaction was mixed to Walker's recommended changes.

Public schools and colleges — guaranteed income tax revenues in the Utah Constitution — may be the most apprehensive. Under the proposal, they would be more dependent on property and sales taxes because income tax rates would drop.

"We certainly would not want to give up what we have for the uncertainty" of another funding source, said Gary Cameron, executive director of the Utah School Superintendents Association. "Unless there is some provision to hold education absolutely harmless, of course . . . (we're) nervous."

He fears lawmakers, who typically don't like to raise taxes, would be reluctant to increase property taxes make up for lost income tax revenues. The governor's task force reported that property taxes would have to jump $130 per $100,000 of assessed valuation.

According to the task force's calculations, a family of four earning $50,000 would get

enough of an income tax break that they would still come out ahead after a property tax increase, if their home was valued at less than $235,000.

Health care could also be hard hit by the proposal, which would require doctors and hospitals to charge sales tax on top of already skyrocketing costs for medical services.

"It's going to increase patient costs. It'll probably increase health-plan costs. It's probably going to increase hospital costs," said Dr. Howard McQuarrie, medical director of the Public Employees Health Program that covers 190,000 Utahns.

The proposal attempts to broaden the sales tax base by taking tax off all the "tools of production" used by businesses and putting it on consumer services.