Senator Debbie Clary

From the desk of Senator Debbie Clary…

Although my office has already sent out our November newsletter, we have decided that a couple of recent updates warrant a “special,” mid-month newsletter.  I will also take this as another opportunity to send wishes for a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving!  Here, below, is what has been going on with regard to Tax Reform and Small Business:

 Tax Reform… 

Members of both the NC House and Senate Finance Committees met last week to debate reforming the tax code.  This proposed “reform” would lower the state sales and income taxes, while extending the sales tax to services like auto repair, home improvement, and warranties.  In a recent study conducted by the Civitas Institute, 58.5% of polled voters said they would oppose such a plan.  Here is the full breakdown of the poll:

I agree with Civitas Institute Senior Legislative Analyst Chris Hayes’ statement, “Voters are skeptical of any move by the legislators to ‘reform’ the tax code. Having been lied to repeatedly about the expiration of supposed temporary taxes, voters have little faith in the General Assembly when it comes to taxes.”

This plan is not a “reform”: it is simply a reallocation of taxes.  Instead of finding new, creative ways of disguising taxes from a disgruntled base, we should be looking at more responsible and accountable spending, as well as zero-based budgeting, as a better solution.  I agree with the majority on the issue and will not support this “reform.”

Small Business …Senator Clary ranked among the top …

In a recent study conducted by the NC FreeEnterprise Foundation, Senator Debbie Clary has been ranked among the highest in the NC Senate as voting positive for small business in NC.  These “ratings” are derived from the voting records of state lawmakers on key business issues, during the past session, and a survey of North Carolina business leaders and government affairs professionals representing a wide range of industries, interests and geographic areas across the state.

On this topic, Senator Clary stated, “Being a friend of small business simply translates into working for more jobs in our community.  Our work in the General Assembly is to set the stage for local commissioners and economic development teams to build a North Carolina that is ready to do business.”  Small business is the key to many of our current problems; therefore, it makes sense to support such initiatives.

To see the complete NC Senate rankings, please click here.

Want to see back issues of Senator Clary’s Newsletters or view interesting News Clips? …

Please visit our site at:  www.senatorclary.com.  Also, please refer to our website to see both the tax reform and small business press releases.

Monthly Mailings

Now that the session has come to an official adjournment until May, 2010, we will be sending the e-Newsletter monthly instead of weekly.  During the interim, I am in the district working on constituent issues as well as my business, Millennium Marketing and MMG LIVE Networking.  The Raleigh office will remain open Monday thru Friday with my Legislative Assistant, Misty Greene.  You can reach us at debbie.clary@ncleg.net or debbie@senatorclary.com or if you prefer to call, the number is 919.715.3038.  We check our mail daily and will get back to you as soon as possible.  I would like to emphasize how thankful I am for your readership, comments, and input throughout the “long session.”

Thanks as always for your support and for the honor and privilege of serving as your Senator!