That being said, Governor-Elect Patrick’s new nominee for Sec. of Finance and Administration (fyi, also plays a big part in Control Board policy) Leslie Kirwin has already said things that bother me. Echoing Patrick’s own calls for more local options tax rights, Kirwin is on record in today’s Globe as supporting such a move. For those of you that don’t know, local options are taxes exercised by individual municipalities on “meals, hotel rooms, and other services” as 22 News puts it. That could potentially include cities’ own income and sales taxes too.

I use cities deliberately because, despite a rash of Proposition 2 1/2 override failures, in primarily smaller communities, these locales will not take action that will endanger their still superior fiscal condition compared to say Springfield, Lowell, or even Boston. As stated in an earlier post Revenue, Revenue cities need the money most desperately. They will install these taxes and only hurt themselves. Customers will decide to frequent the slightly further 99 Restaurant in East Longmeadow rather than the one at the Eastfield Mall, for example. I know it sounds stupid, but it is TRUE! Having worked each no-tax holiday the past three years, it is packed with people desperate to show up “Uncle Sam” as one customer of mine put it, the inaccuracy of his comment notwithstanding. Either a local sales or meals tax will repeat this occurrence manyfold.

The same holds true for an income tax. Watch what is left of Springfield’s middle class vanish when the day comes for that. Boston would suffer a similar fate, although its millionaires on Beacon Hill may swallow it, the dwindling middle class will jump ship, and the lower classes will probably be exempt anyway.

The sole exception to this is a hotel tax. That tax only brought it about $800,000 to Springfield this past fiscal year. Giving the city the right to boost it (within reasonable limits) can do no harm. It is unlikely that Springfield, being the center of the metro area will suffer if its room taxes are higher than neighboring cities. Its hotels are brand names and near the MassMutual Center and Hall of Fame.

As stated above, I am not against new taxes and revenue specifically for municipalities. And if today’s rant was convoluted (as mine often are), let me put it this way. Aside from property taxes which are fairly rigid, Mass communities, especially the cities, cannot afford to be competing with each other over taxes. Again going back to Revenue, Revenue, should the legislature enact say a 1% extra meals tax across the board and let the cities/towns keep it, I’m there. But putting that power into Council Chambers and Town Meeting halls will be a catastrophe in the long run. It may seem undemocratic. However, many cities are still wounded beasts who will gnaw off their own leg to escape the trap of revenue shortfalls.

Its fiscally unwise long-term and proven so in communities elsewhere in the name. More importantly it is failure and we cannot allow that.