Haley Asks Lawmakers to Pass a Budget
The state's new budget is supposed to begin July 1, but lawmakers can't reach an agreement about tax relief for business owners.
With only four days left before the end of the fiscal year, Gov. Nikki Haley criticized lawmakers Tuesday for not sending her a budget.
"We are going to push. We're going to push hard," Haley said. "They need to give me a budget."
The House and the Senate are still deadlocked over an income tax break for small business owners.
In a $6.7 billion budget, the House wants $60 million in tax relief, while the Senate proposed $20 million, according to a report on WSAV-TV. The House then suggested a compromise of $40 million in tax relief, but the Senate wouldn't accept it.
Sen. John Land, D-Manning, criticized the House proposal, saying that it favored the wealthy, according to an Associated Press report.
About 44 percent of the tax cut would benefit businesses bringing in $500,000 a year or more, according to the report.
Haley criticized Land and the other conference committee members Tuesday for not wanting to give tax relief and for delaying the budget.
"They don't want to give it. Sen. Land doesn't want to give the tax relief period," Haley said. "This is all distractions. All they're trying to do is talk about big money and small money when the bottom line is you've got four Republicans and two Democrats that don't want to give it at all."
If lawmakers can't reach an agreement, different versions of a continuing resolution passed by the House and the Senate would keep the state government running under the current budget, according to the report from WSAV-TV.
Negotiations will continue Tuesday.
Laura
12:38 pm on Tuesday, June 26, 2012
If the bill will give releif to business owners who bring in $500,000 a year or more. Well I do not consider them "small business" but large corporations! Give the biggest releif to the "Mom and PoP" business who are struggling. Stop making the rich richer and the poor poorer. We are tired of carrying the blunt of taxes for the large business. They get all kinds of tax cuts and exemptions as it is now.
Mimi
12:42 pm on Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Hey Nimrata why don't you do away with the state income tax all together or does that eliminate your patsy to pay for your corporate bribery fund. Pathetic this woman is a clueless drone. We can't pay our bills so lets just give more away in corporate welfare not to worry we can always squeeze alittle more out of our poor and our seniors. This woman is a pathetic example of a human being neverless an American.
SDR
1:45 pm on Tuesday, June 26, 2012
need a little Demo help on the Fairtax....that would completely untax the poor.
S0274, H3993
ReadIt
8:57 pm on Tuesday, June 26, 2012
She wants a budget so she can veto 50% of it.