Michael Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, was skeptical of the monthly-holiday proposal when I first mentioned it to him. He said the Department of Revenue estimates that last weekend's spree will cost Massachusetts about $20 million in lost taxes and that if it were extended to once a month it could cost an already strapped state $250 million.
"The meals tax has shown itself to be an important source of revenue,'' said Michael Widmer, executive director of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, a nonprofit that monitors state finances. "I think we'll see more communities look to adopt it. . . . It's largely painless for the taxpayers.''
The sales tax was hiked from 5 percent to 6.25 percent last year to raise about $900 million to help balance the state budget. Michael Widmer, president of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, said dropping the sales tax to 3 percent would devastate police, fire and school funding.
