Major Tax System Overhaul Would Benefit North Carolinians

New JLF report outlines current threats to liberty, prosperity

Raleigh (Carolina Journal Online) - North Carolina's tax system needs radical reform to maximize prosperity and minimize harm to individual liberty. That's the theme of the John Locke Foundation's latest Macon Series Policy Report.

"The state's current system of taxation aggressively interferes with individual liberty and retards economic growth," said report author Dr. Roy Cordato, JLF Vice President for Research and Resident Scholar. "The existing tax system rewards some activities and penalizes others without any sound economic basis. It places multiple layers of taxation on certain kinds of activities, such as interest income, dividends, and capital gains. It also promotes forms of taxation -- such as the corporate income tax -- that are completely hidden from those who pay the tax."

Cordato is releasing his report as some legislators push for tax changes that would take away freedom, rather than promoting it. "The state tax code does not need new taxes on cigarettes, alcoholic beverages, or other products these legislators don't like," he said. "The state should repeal separate sales taxes for these items, as well as taxes on restaurant meals and soft drinks."