Foundation in The News: The Rome News-Tribune cited Foundation President Kelly McCutchen in an article in which Dr. Ben Carson proposed ending property taxes and replacing them with a statewide tax:
His suggestion to replace local property taxes with state funding isn’t so easy to do, according to Kelly McCutchen, president of the Georgia Public Policy Foundation. It would mean raising state taxes equal to double the current income tax.
Even then, the idea could backfire. Much of the difference comes from the amount local districts choose to add to what the state already funds, and even under Carson’s proposal, the local supplements could create regional differences, McCutchen said. Spending per pupil in public schools in Georgia counties ranges from $6,400 in Chickamauga City Schools to $14,000 in Atlanta City Schools.
“It’s an interesting idea, but there are a lot of political challenges to it,” he said.
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