Change of hearts, change of calendar: Tax increases pulled from floor

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Alabama State House

Well, I’ll be! It looks like someone breathed new life (read: reason) into the House GOP and some members (word is it’s a strong group of freshmen) decided to stand up against the impending vote for tax increases.

Alabama Today has learned that as many as 20 members were poised to publicly take a stand against the effort to raise taxes. Good for them! As I said Monday, campaigning against tax increases and then passing them is breaking the promise legislators made to voters. The members who do so, or who advocate doing so, should come out individually and explain themselves.

There are times when emergencies call for drastic measures such as tax increases but with other options on the table it’s not the time for a solution of last resort. I’m happy to hear that some members aren’t just going along to get along.

Among the tax-and-fee increases being pushed by the House speaker were several that would burden Alabama families and businesses. Fiscal conservatives should not be so willing to concede that such tax increases are the best answer yet.

We look forward to watching this play out, hearing more about what happened behind closed doors, and reporting on it. Stay tuned to this breaking story.