The Tax Loophole For Pesticides
So Washington is facing a $6 billion budget shortfall, give or take. The state is looking at slashing funding for core services like public schools, higher education, and even public safety. The governor is calling the situation "truly ugly." Things are really pretty dire.
It seems like this would be a good time to close tax loopholes, especially when the loopholes are antiquated and preverse. So here's one: despite the fact that Washington levies a sales tax on pretty much everything, the state has a special tax-exemption loophole for pesticides and fertilizers. We're talking about roughly 2 billion pounds of fertilizers and maybe 37 million tons of pesticides that, for some reason, we don't tax. If we applied the same tax rate that we use for clothing and computers, toys and tacos, we'd be looking at $100 million over the budget cycle.
$100 million won't solve all our budget woes but that's a decent chunk of change for teachers, cops, and college tuition. Why on earth should we keep this loophole?
Are American Freezer-Buyers Getting Sold a Bill of Goods?
In an uncharacteristic fit of virtue I recently vowed to start eating better. Among other things, this means I'm stocking the freezer so that I don't get lured by the wealth of take-out in my 'hood.
In fact, I even bought a chest freezer so that I'd have a place to stash all food I'm making (and buying). Naturally, I did a bit of research before buying, but apparently not enough.
I have a feeling that if I lived in Canada I would have made a better choice. Both the US and Canada provide reasonably detailed product information to consumers but there's a big difference in context when it comes to understanding energy use and operating costs.
