The lines at the stores on sales tax free weekend proves how unpopular this tax is.

You don't raise taxes by $1 billion during a recession.

When will the state stop grabbing at our wallets ?

Will we ever roll back a tax ? This tax puts us at a disadvantage with New Hampshire.

Thank god for Marty! Carolyn Dykema never met a tax increase she did not like. Of course, she does whatever she is told to do by the Speaker and the teachers' union. Tax hike- yes sirs!

WOW, look at all those votes of Dykema raising taxes. And, these are just related to the sales tax ! She's voted to raise other taxes too. That roll call list voting for tax increases is quite a poor record, just awful.

Let's have a little common sense here. Revenues collected by the state are returned to each city and town by way of local aid. This helps pay for services that include: schools, library, road maintaince, recreation, senior services and more to name just a few. Costs to the state rose dramatically because of the recssion (unemployment, etc) and we still trying to recover our local aid from the Romney cuts years ago. No one likes taxes. However if you want your police & fire departments staffed and equiped properly, your roads paved, your children to be enrolled a great school system and more; it costs money and that has to come from somewhere. It's fine to talk about cutting taxes, what are people willing to do without is question, I don't hear a lot about that.
By the way Ms. Webber NH has no advantage if you live there. Their services are far worse, their property taxes are very high. Just remember EVERYTHING costs. I'd like to know what specific cuts Mr. Lamb proposes to roll back taxes. Haven't hear much about that. Tax cuts HAVE to "paid for" with reduction in services. Look what happened on the Federal level when we gave out tax breaks. The states had to pick up the slack, then local governments have to give up their revenues while struggling to maintain services. Just a little common sense please.

It's clear Dykema votes to raise taxes. That's quite a summary of votes. It would be good to make a weekend in August the permanent sales tax free weekend. That's a good first step. Then, also work to reduce it overall. I think many more people would buy big ticket items local instead of treking to New Hampshire if they could weigh the cost of sales tax vs gas.The sales tax was 5% for a long time, and then Beacon Hill went bonkers about it, just a way to take more money away from us. It impacts jobs and businesses and they would hire more if it was a more business friendly environment. The higher sales tax makes it worse for us consumers and the vendors we buy from. It's a lose-lose situation.

Use of a Sales Tax is one of the most efficient ways for the government to get revenue. The cost to the State is relatively low, with the large number of bureaucrats and enforcement agents proving plumb political jobs for those who get these lifetime positions.

The real burden of a sales tax is on the merchants, who are forced to collect the tax, fill the forms, make the payments, hire accountants and lawyers to deal with the States regulations and demands.

None of those costs are applied to NH merchants, placing them in a competitive advantage that is much greater than just the actual tax rate.

NH merchants not only makes sales to people who might put off the purchase of an item if costs totaled ~10% more, but they also benefit from the influx of Massachusetts shoppers going North to get the bargains, while picking up some wine at the NH State Liquor Store, and gassing up at the pumps with the lower State gas tax too.

The sales and other taxes have many hidden costs. Lets use common sense and have a tax policy that raises the revenue we need in the most sensible manner.

Or we could just tax everything that moves or stands still. I think Dykema like other Mass Dems likes the tax it now, tax it more and then tax it again theory.