By Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services via East Valley Tribune
Had he not lost to Senator-elect Sean Bowie, Tempe Republican Frank Schmuck apparently would have received a cold shoulder from his GOP colleagues in the state Legislature over the central plank of his campaign platform—eliminating the state income tax.
The Republican-controlled legislature doesn’t plan to vote this coming year—or in the near future—to kill the tax.
In his campaign for the Legislative District 18 Senate seat, covering Ahwatukee and parts of Chandler, Tempe and Mesa, Schmuck hammered constantly on his plan to gradually replace the income tax with a consumption levy on everything but gas, clothing and food.
He reasoned that such a tax would yield millions in untapped revenue from tourists.
After the election, Bowie, an Ahwatukee Democrat and the only member of the state Senate who has never served in the Legislature, said he didn’t think Schmuck’s platform resonated with voters.
