News-Record.com

I'm listening to the tax modernization committee over at the legislature this morning. This is the group looking at different ways to structure North Carolina’s tax structure, what rates are appropriate, which level of governments should have which taxing powers.

It’s pretty technical stuff, and a group of university professors are just finishing up giving an oral presentation with a bunch of slides. Apparently the honorables on the committee are feeling pretty frisky after looking at all those numbers.

Sen. Tony Rand, who is running the show, asked for paper copies of the presentation be provided.

“I still work with an abacus. This all makes me nervous,” Rand said.

And in a fit of optimism, Sen. David Hoyle mockingly urged caution with all this tax reform stuff.

“If we make the state too attractive, we’re going to have to put up with a lot more Yankees,” he said.

Rand allowed, “We make to put up gates at the border.”

So is anything getting done . . . other than witty repartee?

As with a lot of government operations, it’s hard to tell what the final product might be. But the folks in the room certainly sound like they’re serious about changing things about. What those changes will look like, who know. In general, the changes being advocated by the academic types would mean more things would be taxed (like newspapers!) and there would be fewer exemptions, but the rates would be lower than they are today. (Related.)