{Frankfort, Kentucky}...According to Governor Steve Beshear's Office for Economic Analysis, under the state tax code, Kentuckians can take advantage of 253 tax breaks that add up to more than $12 billion in annual tax relief. That’s more than all the revenue that goes to the state’s general and road fund funds combined. Critics say all those tax breaks are slowly bleeding the state government and its agencies dry at a time when funding for education and programs that help the neediest Kentucky residents is being cut. Beshear’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Tax Reform is examining the state’s tax breaks as part of its job of recommending ways to make the tax code more equitable, but it will face fierce opposition from lobbyists, who argue that those breaks do far more good than harm by keeping money in the private economy, where it is best spent. Comair, now owned by Delta Air Lines, recently announced it will cease operations this fall, yet the tax break remains in effect, costing the state $24.9 million.
