My state legislature
December 30th, 2004 at 10:57 am by Preston Taylor HolmesWhat a bunch of half-wits. Starting this Saturday, January 1, Tennessee gets stupider. This seems to happen every time a bucket of new laws goes into effect. This one is particularly rich, however.
Drug peddlers will be required to pay state excise taxes on illegal substances — from marijuana to moonshine, from cocaine to the often illegally obtained prescription painkiller OxyContin — under a new law that goes into effect Saturday.
In short, Tennessee is going to somehow tax drug dealers. That’s right, all those south Memphis crack dealers, East Nashville smack peddlers and UT athletic dorm dope distributors will have to either voluntarily pay takes on their earnings or pay a fine when they finally get caught.
How will the revenue actually be collected?
That’s going to happen.
While this new law will probably raise your average drug dealer’s cost of doing business (the ones careless enough to get busted, that is), it is a shining example of the complete lack of logic inherent in our state legislature. Additionally, once these hayseed politicians get dollar signs in their eyes, they’ll buy into any new revenue scheme, no matter how far-fetched.
The mixed message the state sends is:
Drugs are bad. Don’t do drugs. Don’t sell drugs. Although, if you’re going to sell drugs, please voluntarily pay taxes on your profits. In fact, if you’re going to sell drugs, sell an assload of them, so that we can really rake in the revenue from your entrepreneurial efforts.
How has this law worked in North Carolina, the state with the model we’re following?
Of the 72,000 taxpayers North Carolina has assessed, only 79 people voluntarily bought stamps, she said.
What the hell were those 79 people thinking? They must have been stoned when they voluntarily bought tax stamps. Let’s hope they didn’t use a personal check to pay for them.
The state legislature needs to drop the charade and legalize marijuana if they want to create real tax revenue. It’s Tennessee’s number 1 or 2 cash crop – I can’t remember which, but it’s way up there. If you want tax revenue, legalize it, regulate it and fill your government coffers with more cash, that you will no doubt squander just as you do the taxpayer funds you already confiscate.
Is it too much to expect some honesty from these politicians?
Oh yeah, they’re politicians. Of course it is.
December 30th, 2004 at 11:35 am
Tennessee To Tax Cocaine…
…among other illegal drugs (via Six Meat Buffet).
The Tennessean – Come the new year, the tax man is coming after drug dealers in Tennessee.
Drug peddlers will be required to pay state excise taxes on illegal substances � from marijuana to mo…
December 30th, 2004 at 12:00 pm
What’s also scary is that Tennessee is joining 22 other states with this!
December 30th, 2004 at 12:47 pm
this is actually making me laugh — you were right when you said this was stupid – - it is
December 30th, 2004 at 1:11 pm
It’s just chock full of absurdity isn’t it?!? Well, we have a lot of that in our state government. Glad I could give you a chuckle, Uptown Girl.
December 30th, 2004 at 1:51 pm
You know it does sound pretty stupid, but you need to look back a bit and it makes some sense. If you recall Al Capone was not ever convicted of murder or the like, he was busted for what, Tax Evasion. That’s right folks, while it may raise some money it is also another way to bust dope dealers at the state level.
December 30th, 2004 at 1:57 pm
I do recall that about Capone and you make a good point. However, I believe this particular law is more about revenue generation and less about law enforcement – but I could be mistaken (*gasp*). Maybe I am being a little hard on the legislature, but it’s not like they haven’t earned it, the bastards.
December 30th, 2004 at 2:49 pm
Oh, hell no you are not being to hard on the legislature. They are a bunch of thieving bastards. I was only pointing out that it may have more than one purpose.
December 30th, 2004 at 3:10 pm
I smell what you’re cooking.
December 30th, 2004 at 4:16 pm
“Its law was modeled after North Carolina’s, which has collected $83 million in the 14 years it has been on the books”
It was later revealed that it only costs them $20 million a year in overhead to collect the tax.
December 30th, 2004 at 7:08 pm
Digger, that’s a small price to pay for an ever-exploding bureaucracy now, isn’t it?
December 30th, 2004 at 7:43 pm
The days of Capone are long gone and while a good point to make I don’t see this being the reason for the new laws – - I have to agree with Preston that it’s about the bucks and not so much about law enforcement.
I’m curious about the $83 million Digger mentioned – - how many arrests went along with that?
December 31st, 2004 at 11:43 am
I misunderstood Digger’s comment – - thanks Preston for clearing it up for me – - just goes to show I shouldn’t do a dozen things at one time