Comments about ‘Raising food tax will hurt poor, advocates say’

This is one tax which burdens us all equally. Some will pay more because they buy more or buy more expensive food items but we all pay. I personally favor the food tax.

Never tax a product that is essential to life. The government must make do with less money. Massive tax cuts are in order to help American citizens.

Actually the food tax does not burden us all equally. If you have more money you have a greater proportion of your income to spend on food than the poor. By making all pay the same tax straight across the board, it places a greater burden on the poor who have a smaller percentage of income to pay for food. Therefore this is a regressive tax and does not distribute the tax burden equally or fairly. I am very much against the food tax and think it should be done away with completely. There are much better ways to increase the budget or better yet lets just reduce out expenses. There sure is alot that could be trimmed in the state and county budgets.

Washington state has NO tax of food - ZERO.
And no income tax - ZERO.

But if you smoke, drink, and gamble...
...and eat JUNK foods -- be prepared to get hit with a 8% on JUNK foods and some of the highest taxes in the nation on tabacco and alcohol.

What happened to when Utah was the most progressive state to join the Union?

My, how things have changed......

Unfortunately, it is hard for the poor to spend more on groceries. You can't tell people how to spend their money, but I wish they could be educated on how to budget and decide what a want vs a need is. When I lived in GA I would drive by tiny little houses (not far from my own small home) and in front of their house was the nicest newest car and on top of their home was a big satellite dish. I've never had cable b/c I wish to spend my money on necessities and I have never had a new car because I need to save for retirement. When someone gets free handouts, it is a lot harder for someone to value what they get then if they had to work hard for it.

Re:Food Tax

"This is one tax which burdens us all equally. Some will pay more because they buy more or buy more expensive food items but we all pay. I personally favor the food tax."

A food tax doesn't effect everyone equally since a person with more income would spend a smaller share of their income on sales tax while those with less income would spend a greater share of their income on a food tax.

Let's assume that you have a family of 4 and spend $400 a month on food that you prepare at home. The sales tax on that food would be $20 a month and a family who is living paycheck to paycheck wouldn't be able to afford it since $20 could make the real difference between becoming homeless or keeping the home you live in.

Let's assume that the family lives on the cheap and spends only $600 for a home and $400 for food. They would need to make 12,000 a year or $6.25 an hour. $20 represents 2% of their income or $240 yearly. If you are living paycheck to paycheck $20 is life or death

I am poor. My income is $449.34 a month. Every penny I have to pay on food tax is money I would NOT be able to spend on food. In the last 6 years, I have only had 2 fast-food meals. I do not have a car or a satellite dish.

Tax corporations, not people.

This food tax burden is a real joke on every one. I have never seen the poor pay any food tax, they all have two tax free welfare cards to buy food with. Not only with that, the poor pay much less if any income taxes.

By legal definition, the majority of Utahan's are poor and earn less than poverty incomes. If these advocates want to help the poor they should be doing something about the slave labor wages in Utah so they can afford food and taxes. These advocates, all arrogant businessmen, are attacking the government for more aid rather than better pay to their workers.

We in Utah have so many poor because business who call their workers a burden. Give a man another dollar or two and hour and it will more than offset some of the tax burden. This state has many professional welfare families and business owners who cut wages and send employees to the state for welfare.

These arrogant businessmen are using the poor to feed off government. These arrogant advocates refuse to do their fair share of providing reasonable income and wages so they aren't so poor.

Increase taxes or cut spending on programs. It's as simple as that. Neither is particularly palatable. I suggest we do both. I have to balance my budget and the government should do likewise. The days of free handouts should be over, particularly any handouts to illegal aliens. If they did not overburden the food banks and other social welfare programs there would be enough resources for the "poor" US citizens. Harsh, maybe but we cannot fund everything.

I think I have just about had it with all the whining. I came from a very poor family in terms of money, but my parents did everything they could to support us. My parents shopped garage sales, sewed play clothes, cooked from scratch, planted a garden, canned food and taught us by example. The importance of education was stressed, we were read to every day. We were taught self sufficiency and self-respect. We never took food stamps or any kind of welfare because my parents would have never considered that.

No I did not live in the dark ages, I am the youngest in my family of eight children. I am 24. All eight of us are college grads, 4 with advanced degrees. All six boys served LDS missions. All of us married and none of us have criminal records. We all contribute to charitable causes and volunteer our time.

I have one brother who is disabled, in a wheelchair but this has never stopped him from excelling in his personal and professional life.

Stop whining and looking for a handout but be willing to accept a handup and give back when you are successful.

I'm poor as well, I make mimamum wage and struggel to make ends meet but there are those who are much worse of than me even. I didnt study in high school, didnt even try to get an education, I was too busy doing whatever I wanted and now Im paying the price for it. I wish I had had a family like the Harsh. Im trying to change now and I dont want handouts if I can do it by myself. I think its not about money its about doing something for myself instead of asking other people to help me.

Until some people abandon the welfare mentality that somehow they are entitled to something for nothing, something they did not earn, some freebie paid for by the taxes of hard working Americans, we will never get some people to take care of themselves.

Some people go from agency to agency, from charitable resource to charitable resource to get something for nothing. I have volunteered for years with various charities but I am seriously discouraged because I see the same people and now their children coming back for services. Nothing has changed and in most cases these people are not mentally or physically impaired they are just lazy and have made it a way of life to sponge of the kindness and generosity of others. It is disheartening in the extreme when you want to help people but then see the abuses.

Welfare should be a short term intervention not a way of life

It's all very well for these advocates to stand up and decry how reinstating the food tax will be a burden on the poor, just where do they think we should cut spending and increase taxes?

Should we cut spending to schools, corrections,the handicapped, mentally ill, foster kids or what?

Should we increase taxes on alcohol, cigarettes, gas, small businesses, large corporations, a head tax, vehicle registration, the middle class, the rich or what?

Don't tell us what should not be done, tell us what solutions you have. Most of your clients are not paying taxes anyway but I do, thousand of dollars each year, do I have to pay more because I got an education, worked hard and prepared for difficult times, so I don't need help from advocates?

I say raise the food tax, we all pay it even if it represents a smaller portion of some people's income. My taxes are a much bigger portion of my income than the income of the poor who pay no taxes.

I am in favor of the food tax. No mater what anyone says, this tax affects all, rich and poor alike. To some it will not be an issue and to others it will be a big issue but at least it's one we will all pay.

What will hurt the poor is to fail to allow them to be learn responsible for themselves and to develope independence and self-sufficiency. None of us in this community are suffering under the kinds of poverty that many people in many countries are. Yet these people manage to survive and make lives for themselves. Why do you think we have illegals flocking her, because our lowest standard of living is much better than theirs. We do a diservice to people when we provide with them with cradle to grave support. I have no problem with helping out but it should not be a lifelong pattern of living.