Shelby says Bentley tax hike could hurt Alabama’s economy: ‘Taxing is not the answer’

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — During an interview on Yellowhammer Radio with Cliff Sims on Tuesday, Sen. Richard Shelby expressed concerns that Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley’s $541 million tax hike proposal could negatively impact that state’s economic development efforts.

“Well, I don’t think it’s going to help,” Shelby said.

Sen. Shelby, who served in the Alabama State Legislature before being elected to Congress, said he knows from experience that raising taxes is not the answer to shoring up budgets.

“Spending will always run ahead of the revenue,” he said, “so you’ll never have enough taxes or enough money to pay for the programs that are already on the books, either federal or state. Taxing is not the answer to it.”

Shelby added that Alabamians know who will actually end up paying for taxes levied on companies. “You know you hear the old story,” he said, “‘we’re going to tax the banks, we’re going to tax the utilities, we’re going to tax the corporate world, well all that’s going to be passed on to all of us, the consumer. People are smarter than you think.”

You can listen to that part of the interview above. You can also check out the complete interview below, during which Sen. Shelby rails against President Obama’s attorney general nominee and the administration’s ongoing negotiations with Iran, as well as touching on his upcoming re-election bid and his thoughts on the damage the president’s global warming agenda could inflict on Alabama’s economy.

Yellowhammer Radio airs every weekday from 12-1 p.m. and can be streamed live on the show’s flagship station, Superstation 101.1, WYDE.