House Speaker to Modify Tax Bill

After consulting with key Democratic lawmakers, House Speaker George Keverian '53 (D-Everett) yesterday said he would modify a controversial new state tax package before sending it to the floor for debate.

Before recessing the House, Keverian spent most of the session hunting for Democratic support for the $1.2 billion deficit-reduction proposal. He said the House would take up a slightly altered version of the legislation today.

In an effort to make the bill more acceptable to legislators, the Democratic leadership will now propose an increase in the state sales tax from 5 to 6 percent, Keverian said. The initial legislation called for a tax increase to 7 percent.

The bill's changes come in response to strong opposition from Massachusetts Democrats over the *** of the tax increases and Keverian's methods of gaining support for the bill.

Earlier this week, Rep. Robert A. Cerasoli (D-Quincy) left his position as chair of the Post Audit and Oversight Committee, saying that Keverian wanted his resignation if he would not support the bill.

The speaker has hailed the tax package, which was forwarded to the House by the Ways and Means Committee on Wednesday, as a possible solution to the Bay State's fiscal crisis. Massachusetts' current budget deficit has been estimated at between $720 and $825 million.

Considerable opposition from both parties still exists to the revenue package, which contains a 50 percent increase in the capital gains tax and a 10 cent surcharge on gasoline prices for two years.

"We're not even half-way through the year, so why rush into a tax package that we don't know yet is sufficient to reduce the deficit," said John H. Flood '75 (D-Canton), who chairs the Taxation Committee. "With the raise [in the capital gains tax] we send the wrong message to the business community."

Flood added that debate on the tax increase should take place in June when "the deficit figures are clear."

Flood also criticized the leadership for "massaging the package" to make it more popular after first coming out so strongly in its support.

"Now people are not only confused, they become cynical about the process. There is a crisis of confidence with the citizens," Flood said.