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Capitol Watch: Sustainable smoke?

Capitol Watch: Sustainable smoke?

Now, when I voted for Christine Gregoire, I did so knowing I would not agree with everything she did as Governor. Her proposed cigarette tax increase to fund public school issues - such as smaller class sizes - is one of those instances. I am not against taxes. America is one of the most under-taxed countries in the world. No, I just don't think another "sin tax" is the right way to go for funding public schools. I realize that some persons who are smokers are parents of children, but not all are, so why should they pay for the other? As a tax payer in the state of Washington, a lot of my money already goes to the public schools. I'm fine with that. It's in society's best interest to have an educated population. But why should I pay more for it just because I smoke. Older folks whose kids are out of school often have the same complaint regarding their property taxes. A lot of the money raised by taxing property goes to schools.

Here is my proposition: Let's tax the snot out of people who actually have kids in the schools. We'll call it the "school tax," and households with school age children would pay this tax. Now, I realize that this would effectively end the idea of free public schools, but I think its really the only fair way to go.

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