Some GOP lawmakers question flat-tax proposal
In this Dec. 2, 2020, file photo, Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey answers a question during a news conference in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, Pool, File)
The bid by Gov. Doug Ducey to permanently cut $1.5 billion a year of state revenues is based on an economic theory and a set of numbers that may not hold up under closer examination.
And all that is worrying Arizona cities who stand to lose hundreds of millions of dollars if the governor is wrong.
C.J. Karamargin, the governor’s press aide, said the way his boss figures it, enacting what he has billed as “the largest tax cut in Arizona history” will provide an economic stimulus that will keep Arizona competitive in landing new companies and getting firms to expand here. And Daniel Scarpinato, Ducey’s chief of staff, said the situation here is different than when Kansas tried this a decade ago, only to find its economy in a shambles.