While it would appear that we have dodged a bullet yet again in the current legislative session, the move to tax legal services has intensified in the last few years. Most recently, the bill made it as far as it ever has when, last month, it passed in the Pennsylvania Senate Finance Committee in bipartisan fashion, by one vote. There seems to be little stomach for the full Senate to take up the measure given the impending governor’s race, to say nothing of the House. However, should the bill ever become law, it will severely injure those dependent on the already-deficient workers’ compensation system. This consequence, intended or otherwise, should be strongly considered before any legislator casts a vote.
The bill in question, SB 76, the Property Tax Independence Act, is designed to change the way school funding is raised in Pennsylvania by eliminating the school property tax and replacing it with an expansion of both the amount and nature of the sales tax and an increase in personal income tax. As it pertains to the legal profession, the act would expand the sales tax base to include the taxation of certain legal services. While the need for property tax reform is real, shifting the burden from homeowners to people who need legal representation is a terrible idea.
