One of the hot items in this year’s legislative session is not likely to come to a vote. But the leader of the state senate thinks it’s worth talking about. Senator Chuck Purgason has had his Fair Tax proposal on the floor three times and each time has run into opposition and time limits that have kept him from getting to a vote.
That’s the proposal that would call for a statewide vote on replacing the income tax with higher sales taxes. Senate floor leader Kevin Engler says Purgason’s bill will not get a vote. But he says it should get a comprehensive discussion. He says the discussion would be a service to the public which is going to face the issue on the ballot sooner or later, one way or another.
Engler says he’ll try to talk Purgason into bringing the bill back for an extensive discussion without calling for a vote. He says opponents can always filibuster if Purgason moves for a vote—and a filibuster this late in the session is not something Engler wants. He’s not sure when the bill could be brought back for those discussions but it’s not on his agenda this week.
Listen to Bob Priddy’s story :59 mp3
