Guv's threat: a special session

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. is willing to veto budget or tax bills and call the Utah Legislature back into special session this spring if by general session's adjournment March 1 "reasonable" tax cuts and budgets are not passed, the governor has told the Deseret Morning News.

Huntsman's tough stand comes as a new Morning News/KSL-TV poll shows that most Utahns favor the tax reform/tax cut proposals advocated by Huntsman and many House Republicans.

However, the new Dan Jones & Associates survey shows that even though the state has more than a half billion dollars in new tax revenue, most Utahns don't want a tax cut, preferring the growing revenues be spent on public and higher education, roads and other state needs.

But if tax reductions are coming, among the various tax reform/tax cut plans under consideration 83 percent of Utahns back the 5 percent "flatter-rate" income tax that Huntsman and House Republicans want.

And among Utahns who want a tax cut, by a whopping 86 percent most want the sales tax removed from food at the cash register — another stand demanded by Huntsman and House Republicans.

Would Huntsman be willing to veto bills and budgets and then force lawmakers into a special session?

"I sure am," Huntsman said. "That's why governors can call special sessions" and set session agendas, he added.

"I'm very encouraged that our priorities and focus are the people's priorities and focus" as found in the new poll numbers, Huntsman said.

The new poll of issues in the 2006 Legislature — which ends in just 10 days — found that 58 percent of Utahns don't want a tax cut next year.

Jones found that 28 percent favor a tax cut, 13 percent want the new money allocated in a different way and 1 percent didn't know. Even 54 percent of Republicans said to spend the money, don't give tax cuts, Jones found.

But a tax cut is coming, Huntsman and lawmakers agree. It's just a matter of how much and where.

That 58 percent of Utahns say they don't want a tax cut doesn't bother Huntsman.

"We can do it all. This is a unique year. We can help public education and other state programs. We can give tax cuts. It's not either-or. And we can have the tax come off of food, finally," at the cash register, Huntsman said.

Most GOP senators don't want to remove the sales tax from food at the cash register, leaders say. Rather, Republican senators support giving a personal income tax credit in lieu of cutting the food tax directly.