2012 Governor's State of the State speeches: on Tax Reform


Matt Mead: Wyoming is #1 state for good tax climate

During a time when so many had credit ratings drop, our state's credit rating went up--to the highest (triple A) rating. Conservative budgeting and forecasting practices were cited for the upgrade. A report from The Tax Foundation recently put Wyoming at #1 of states with good tax climates. We have over $14 billion dollars in assets and can build on savings again this year while continuing to invest for future success through wise appropriations. Wyoming remains strong financially.
Source: Wyoming 2012 State of the State Address Feb 13, 2012

Nikki Haley: Flatten individual income tax from six brackets to three

Tax reform is critical to our state--every conversation we have with CEOs at some point drifts to our tax structure. Our budget includes almost $140 million in tax cuts for the people and businesses of South Carolina. These cuts will flatten the individual income tax from six brackets to three, reduce taxes for the citizens of our state by almost 80 million dollars, and phase out the corporate income tax over a four year period, injecting much needed dollars back into our businesses and giving us an unbelievable economic development tool. The tax relief we ultimately adopt must be broad-based, offering relief to as many South Carolinians as possible. And these tax cuts should mean lower rates--not more credits, exemptions, and loopholes that only benefit a chosen few. Together, I believe we can agree to a set of tax cuts that make South Carolina more competitive and send more dollars back where they belong--in the pockets of the people and businesses of our state.
Source: 2012 S.C. State of the State Address Jan 18, 2012

Sean Parnell: Meaningful tax reform; cut spending by $856M

We will be wise stewards of our citizens' money. I have proposed a balanced budget that holds the line on government spending, so we can add nearly $4 billion to our savings accounts for future years. This budget reduces total expenditures by $856 million without shortchanging important investments. It includes more than $1 billion for infrastructure projects; it forces agencies to save where they can--eliminating 288 vacant positions--so we can spend where we must.

Tonight I'm asking each of you to vote yes on meaningful tax reform. The logic is clear: Meaningful tax reform means Alaska will have a more competitive economy. A more competitive Alaska economy means more investment in Alaska. More investment in Alaska means more oil production. And more oil production means a bigger economic pie for Alaskans. In addition to lowering taxes, we are working to increase oil production by streamlining the State's permitting processes.

Source: Alaska 2012 State of the State Address Jan 18, 2012

Chris Christie: Reduce all income tax brackets by 10% and restore EITC

In my budget, I will fulfill a promise I made to all the people of New Jersey in 2009. Real relief from the heavy income tax burden that has strangled our families and forced many to move away.

I propose to reduce income tax rates for each and every New Jerseyan. In every tax bracket. By 10% across the board.

I also propose to fully restore the earned income tax credit for New Jersey's working poor, which we were forced to cut during the dark days of 2010, when growth was gone & we had no money. Understand what this means--every New Jerseyan will get a cut in taxes. The working poor. The struggling middle class. The new college graduates getting their first job. The senior citizens who have already retired. The single mom. The job creators. The

Source: N.J. 2012 State of the State Address Jan 17, 2012

Andrew Cuomo: A flat tax is not a fair tax

We fought for tax fairness. For decades, millions of New Yorkers were burdened with an unfair tax code. Whether a person made $20,000 or $20 million, they paid the same rate. It was just wrong--because a flat tax is not a fair tax. We added new brackets for the middle class and for high earners. The more you make, the higher rate you pay. And we stimulated our economy by cutting taxes for New Yorkers earning $40,000 to $300,000. Today, the middle class is paying the lowest rate in 58 years.
Source: 2012 New York State of the State Address Jan 4, 2012

Andrew Cuomo: Enacted NY's first-ever property tax cap: 2% per year

We began the year by closing a $10 billion deficit with no gimmicks, and we did it on time. The budget included historic reforms to redesign and consolidate state government, eliminate automatic spending increases that cost New Yorkers billions of dollars, and cap spending increases for education and Medicaid. After 20 years of failure, we enacted the state's first-ever property tax cap. New York's property taxes are among the highest in the nation, but for more than 15 years, both houses of the Legislature and three governors failed to bring these skyrocketing costs under control. The tax cap that we enacted limits increases in property taxes to 2 percent, or the rate of inflation--whichever is less. Schools and local governments can go beyond the cap, but only if 60 percent, respectively, of the voters or local legislative body approve.
Source: 2012 New York State of the State Address Jan 4, 2012

  • The above quotations are from 2012 Governor's State of the State speeches.
  • Click here for definitions & background information on Tax Reform.
  • Click here for other issues (main summary page).
  • Click here for more quotes by John Hickenlooper on Tax Reform.
  • Click here for more quotes by Mitch Daniels on Tax Reform.
Candidates and political leaders on Tax Reform:

Retired Senate as of Jan. 2015:
GA:Chambliss(R)
IA:Harkin(D)
MI:Levin(D)
MT:Baucus(D)
NE:Johanns(R)
OK:Coburn(R)
SD:Johnson(D)
WV:Rockefeller(D)

Resigned from 113th House:
AL-1:Jo Bonner(R)
FL-19:Trey Radel(R)
LA-5:Rod Alexander(R)
MA-5:Ed Markey(D)
MO-9:Jo Ann Emerson(R)
NC-12:Melvin Watt(D)
SC-1:Tim Scott(R)
Retired House to run for Senate or Governor:
AR-4:Tom Cotton(R)
GA-1:Jack Kingston(R)
GA-10:Paul Broun(R)
GA-11:Phil Gingrey(R)
HI-1:Colleen Hanabusa(D)
IA-1:Bruce Braley(D)
LA-6:Bill Cassidy(R)
ME-2:Mike Michaud(D)
MI-14:Gary Peters(D)
MT-0:Steve Daines(R)
OK-5:James Lankford(R)
PA-13:Allyson Schwartz(D)
TX-36:Steve Stockman(R)
WV-2:Shelley Capito(R)
Retired House as of Jan. 2015:
AL-6:Spencer Bachus(R)
AR-2:Tim Griffin(R)
CA-11:George Miller(D)
CA-25:Howard McKeon(R)
CA-33:Henry Waxman(D)
CA-45:John Campbell(R)
IA-3:Tom Latham(R)
MN-6:Michele Bachmann(R)
NC-6:Howard Coble(R)
NC-7:Mike McIntyre(D)
NJ-3:Jon Runyan(R)
NY-4:Carolyn McCarthy(D)
NY-21:Bill Owens(D)
PA-6:Jim Gerlach(R)
UT-4:Jim Matheson(D)
VA-8:Jim Moran(D)
VA-10:Frank Wolf(R)
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Page last updated: Aug 10, 2019