Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Restructuring tax system an issue for General Assembly

Upgrading and improving Arkansas's antiquated tax system is a major need for the Arkansas General Assembly.

The Legislature convened Monday, Jan. 10, but on Jan. 3, State Representatives Tommy Roebuck and Chris Thomason were in Prescott to discuss what can be expected.

Roebuck said Arkansans can expect a total reworking of the state's tax system, but expects a fight from lobbyists and special interest groups. This is because improving the tax system will most likely require getting rid of some existing exemptions so state services can be expanded.

"There will be a lot of legislation on taxes," he said.

Thomason said one area people can take comfort in is no one has the stomach to suggest raising sales taxes right now. However, the legislature does need to look at the state's tax policies, and examine the possibility of taxing catalog sales and sales made over the Internet.

"We need to modernize Arkansas's tax policy," he said.

Roebuck said another thing needing to be addressed during this session is sending mentally handicapped young people to facilities out of state. "We're sending 858 children to facilities out of state, and it's costing us $40 million a year.

"The question is why not keep them in Arkansas, close to their families, schools and friends. I'm not convinced we need to send them away."

Roebuck said it would help the children and their parents if they were kept in state. "I know we can provide as good a service and care in mental health than area states and save about $25 million a year."

These facilities, he said, keep the children "drugged up", and doesn't provide educational opportunities for them.

Because this deals primarily with Medicaid patients, Roebuck said, it is a federal issue.

He said projections are for the state to generate more improvement money this year because the economy is supposedly growing. General improvement money, he said, generated a battle in the last session because Gov. Mike Huckabee, Republican members of the House and some Democrats wanted the state to keep these funds.

General improvement monies are used on the local level for such projects as rural fire departments and other improvements local governments couldn't otherwise afford.

Both Roebuck and Thomason urged the public to keep in contact with them during the session and let them know what people think about what's being done.

Roebuck's email address is: roebuckt@arkleg.state.ar.us.

Thomason's email address is: thomasonc@arkleg.state.ar.us.