Miller: Income Tax Trigger As ‘Clear As Mud’
Oklahoma treasurer calls income tax reduction measure ‘clear as mud’
By Rick Green, NewsOK
Almost two months after Oklahoma lawmakers ended their legislative session, the status of a state income tax reduction measure that is often pointed to as one of their top accomplishments is fraught with uncertainty.
Oklahoma taxpayers could get a small cut in their state income taxes beginning in 2016, but nobody can say whether that’s even likely to happen.
It’s all based on a complicated revenue-based “trigger” built in to the measure.
So complicated, in fact, that even state Treasurer Ken Miller, who holds a doctorate in economics, said it’s about as “clear as mud.”
“I just don’t understand the logic of a trigger,” he said Thursday. “There’s no economic reason to pass a measure today predicated on a future event, when one can simply wait for that event to occur and then preserve the flexibility. It’s difficult to explain the mechanics of the trigger and it’s certainly difficult to communicate to the taxpayers what their taxes are going to be.”