The Savage Republican

That doesn't seem like much, one penny out of one hundred...to go to the state...to pay for roads and art and schools...not much at all right? Let's break out the calculator... For a family of four, making $60,000 a year, that penny per dollar additional tax equals $600.00 per year. $600.00 per year is:

• 20 tanks of gasoline (assuming you drive an economy car that only has a 12 gallon tank)
• 6 weeks of groceries
• 3 to 4 months of heat in the winter
• 1 year homeowners insurance premium
• 1 year car insurance premium
• less than one months (assuming a $125,000 mortgage at 5.5% interest) mortgage payment
• Depending on what county you are in, that is 1/2 of your annual property tax payment

That is for anyone who is outside of Hennepin County. Those that live in Hennepin County also need to factor in the new stadium tax of 3 cents on every $20.00 spent in Hennepin County. For someone living in Hennepin County, living on a fixed income (pension for example) the combination of the penny per dollar and the "Twins tax" means the difference between eating cat food or heating their home.
If Jim Pohlad and his friends really feel obligated to pay for something, here is an idea. Maybe Mr. Pohlad can get his wealthy friends together to pay for the new Twins Stadium (the Pohlad family owns the Twins by the way). Maybe if we, the taxpayers, didn't have to buy him a new stadium for his baseball team we would be a little more willing to listen to his idea!