Cynthia Spielman's position on property tax reform:
Property tax reform has been an issue in Pennsylvania for over 30 years. Our elderly are trying to pay the rising costs of property taxes while living on fixed incomes. I support the Governor’s initiative in utilizing slot revenues to help subsidize our school districts and reduce property taxes. My opponent voted against the property tax bill that will give tax cuts to our senior citizens, those persons who can least afford the escalating rise in their property taxes. We must start somewhere and this was a good start, a start in the right direction, a direction that a sound majority of our leadership in Harrisburg agreed upon. I would also, after carefully analyzing the amount of revenue generated, be supportive of increasing our sales tax to either 6.5 or 7% to help reduce and/or eliminate property taxes for all Pennsylvanians. Currently there are 9 states that have a higher sales tax than Pennsylvania. I would not change the items currently taxed and would not include taxing food nor clothing. We also need to look at the loss of revenue when it comes to making purchases over the internet. We have lost a substantial amount of revenue from internet sales here in Pennsylvania. This is another issue that needs to be addressed when looking into increasing Pennsylvania’s sales tax. I would also propose that the legislature change the funding formula and fight to make sure our schools get their fair share of the funding.