This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Why is Joe Atkins wrong on taxes?

candidate for Minnesota House 52b goes on the record...

I am sure most of us have heard the famous Ben Franklin quote “but in the world nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes."   I don’t know too many neighbors who enjoy paying taxes, but they do understand that some amount of taxation is necessary to support basic community services such as police, fire, roads, and schools.  This much we can agree upon.  If we chose to organize as a State and as communities, we all share in the responsibility to pay for our share of these basic functions we entrust the government to manage.

The problems with taxation are many.  Politicians like to think of themselves as ‘problem solvers’.  They see an issue and they develop a program or agency to deal with it.  This leads to a need for more revenue.  This leads to a need to take more money out of your wallet to pay for all of it, whether the proposed ‘solution’ actually solves the problem or not.

The problem with this way of thinking is that politicians spend your money.  Government has an insatiable appetite for more revenue.  This trend needs to stop.  Government cannot solve all of society’s problems; however it can create many of them through unintended consequences.  I happen to believe that you can decide how to spend your money better than a politician can.  People are always more frugal with their own money than someone who wants to spend it for you.

Find out what's happening in Mendota Heightswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Now why do I mention all of this?  Because Joe Atkins TWICE voted against Minnesotan’s keeping their own money.  In the 2012 House Session, I reference two specific bills: HF2337 (The Omnibus Tax Bill) and HF247 (the follow up Bill after Dayton vetoed the Omnibus Bill).   What did Joe Atkins vote against?  The Omnibus Tax Bill reduced the tax burden for small business owners by including tax credits and phased out State property taxes paid by businesses.  It also provided targeted property tax relief for homeowners.  It would have provided $72 Million in tax relief.  The second Bill was a scaled down version of the first which also gave a tax credit to businesses for hiring Veterans.

Why is this important?  Small businesses are the engine of job growth in America.  Providing tax relief enables these businesses to reinvest and grow their businesses and create more jobs.  In a troubled economy, we need as many jobs as we can get.  Government must create a healthy environment for businesses to grow.  This was a great opportunity to not only help reduce our unemployment rate, but also to let you keep more of your own money.  As property values continue to decline, why should you continue to pay high taxes on a home valued less?

Find out what's happening in Mendota Heightswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In tough times, families tighten their belts and cut expenses.  Government must do the same.  I trust you to decide what to do with your money much more than I do an unelected bureaucrat.  Not to mention, your money belongs to you and not to government! 

When Joe Atkins tells you he supports small businesses and keeping your property taxes low, you should look to see if his rhetoric matches his record.  The more I look into much of that record, the more I feel it’s time for a change.  As a homeowner and taxpayer of Inver Grove Heights, I don’t feel Representative Atkins has represented my interests very well.

We live better when we live free.  As your Representative I will protect your economic freedom and stand up to runaway government.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

More from Mendota Heights