http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/33151-north-carolina-imposes-new-taxes-on-car-and-appliance-repairs-to-fund-new-tax-cuts-for-the-rich
"It's estimated that by the time the new corporate tax rate comes into effect, the state will have $350 million less in revenue to spend on necessary public services like education, healthcare, roads and social services.
So how will North Carolina pay for new tax cuts that primarily benefit the rich? By raising taxes on the poor, of course. The roughly $400 million in income tax cuts will be offset by increasing the sales tax on services that are primarily used by the poor. On March 1, new sales tax rates of 6.75 percent will go into effect across North Carolina, and will largely apply to car repairs as well as installation and repair of appliances. As this op-ed from the conservative-leaning Raleigh News & Observer noted, the wealthy can afford new cars and warranties for appliances, so this tax will fall disproportionately on the poor. The author also aptly noted that North Carolina Republicans chose not to increase taxes on services the rich use, like accountants, lawyers, architects and interior designers.
The class war in North Carolina has been raging since 2010 when Republicans took over control of the state legislature for the first time since reconstruction. After Pat McCrory was elected governor in 2012, North Carolina became another experimental lab for conservative policymakers to force through a number of extreme policies. In addition to cutting taxes for the rich and raising them on the poor, the state's GOP majority has demolished public education, disenfranchised Democratic-leaning voters (that law is currently on trial), attacked women's reproductive rights (that law was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court), criminalized the disclosure the chemicals in fracking fluid, and passed numerous other pieces of draconian legislation."
