The Kentucky tax hike you never hear about

The 2019 session of the Kentucky legislature is every bit the right-wing cavalcade of stupid we expected, but 2018 may have been even worse.

The Far Right claims to be for lower taxes. They lie. Last year, not only did Republican lawmakers expand the 6% sales tax to more services, but they also raised the personal income tax so they could give more money to billionaires. Because this was during their malicious efforts to steal from teachers by slashing their pensions, most folks were paying attention to that instead.

Kentucky - like a vast majority of other states and like all First World countries - used to have a graduated income tax. But last year, they raised the income tax for most workers from 2% to 5%. At the same time, they lowered taxes for the rich from 6% to 5%. The ultimate goal is to abolish this tax altogether and replace it with a head tax - levying the same actual amount of taxes on each person, not the same percentage.

Not only does Kentucky's recent tax increase cost most workers, but it's another handout to the rich and big corporations. Kentucky has become a kleptocracy.

Progressive taxation is a foundation for civilization. Without it, we have no society. But Kentucky is now one of very few states without a graduated income tax.

Why did lawmakers raise taxes on the working class? The Campbell County GOP's now-defunct Tumblr blog provided a clue. That page said last year's tax "reforms" were "Biblical taxation." They provided no Bible verses to back it up though.

In other words, the Republican Party of Kentucky seems to think that by raising taxes and lying about it, they're on a mission from God. They think they're the Blues Brothers!

It's nice to know Kentucky is ruled by a dominionist party. It's hard to see how Republicans expect to win votes by raising taxes just to give billionaires free money. No wonder they lost so many seats in the Kentucky House after this happened. It's a shock that they still have any.

It's time for a federal constitutional amendment against regressive taxation. I doubt the Kentucky GOP would obey it, because they hate the Constitution, but other states might be encouraged to balance out their tax systems. Progressive taxation is a must to maintain the living standards common to modern democratic societies.