Poll suggests tax hike would be dangerous

A conservative group has weighed in with a state-wide poll that suggests that elected leaders that continue the temporary sales tax could pay a price at the polls next year.

A poll conducted for The Civitas Institute found that voters would punish politicians who voted to raise their taxes $800 million. (Other polls have shown support for keeping the sales tax if it was a choice between that and laying off teachers.

The survey found that 73 percent were less likely to vote for a legislator in 2012 "who voted to raise taxes by over $800 million” and 75 percent opposed “a plan by Governor Perdue to raise taxes by over $800 million.”

Republican leaders have promised to allow the temporary tax increase to expire, but Perdue has pushed for it to continue to lessen the severity of the budget cuts.
The spin: “North Carolina voters overwhelmingly reject the idea of a tax hike,” said Francis De Luca, civitas president. “While those in support of new taxes now talk about education and 'devastating' budget cuts, voters in 2012 will only read and hear about legislators voting to raise taxes in mailers and on advertisements.”

The poll of  600 North Carolina voters was conducted May 10-11 by National Research Inc. of Holmdel,NJ and had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.