Carol Mayhofer

To the editor:Here at election time, it is very important to deal with realities, instead of dreams. There are many of you out there that feel that an income tax is a much fairer way to raise taxes than our present property tax system. In the world of rhetoric, that may be so, but in the real world, this is what has happened: in state after state that has passed an income tax to reduce property taxes, within 5 years, property taxes are back up to where they were before the income tax was inacted and now, in addition, the residents are paying an income tax. I believe Mark Fernald is well intentioned, but he has already said that he will use some of the income tax money raised ostensibly for education, for other social programs. A broad-based tax is entirely too easy to access, and every special interest group will have their wish list to fill at the taxpayers expense.I think that one of the most remarkable things about our present tax system, is the local control of the majority of money we raise. I would hate to put that control in the hands of a more inefficient, larger bureaucracy.Personally, I would be paying less taxes, the first year, under Mr. Fernald's income tax plan, but it we are to take a lesson from history, in a few short years I will be paying more, with less control over how my money is being spent. I don't want to give up that control. Do you?