Perspective 's Brandon Dutcher recently sat down with Robert Reed, a professor of economics at the University of Oklahoma. Dr. Reed reminds us that, though government likes to play Santa Claus, it rarely knows what presents to get.
Many economists believe high taxes have a negative impact on a state's economic performance.
The scholarly evidence is all over the board. What's a debate is when there's an increase in tax rates, and that is used to fund public sector infrastructure or education or some other type of public services, whether the net effect is positive or negative for a state. My short answer is that I believe the state's public sector has control of too large a portion of the state's resources. So I'm in favor of lower taxes. As we speak here in December, many people are trying to get their Christmas shopping done.