While you, me, Nat Gandhi, and Congress can easily see the problem what are some solutions? Did Nat Gandhi offer any ideas on how to fix this monumental problem to Congress?

The Federal Government should be ashamed of their irresponsible treatment of our Nation's Capital.

How much could the District's revenue needs be reduced by better management of the money that is already being spent? It would help, but probably not enough to solve the structural problem which the District confronts.

Uh-oh, the old D.C. can't tax its non-residents. I work in D.C., live in VA, and don't use any D.C. services that my building doesn't pay for (I use sewer I guess, but not even water as my employer provides bottled water). I've never needed a cop, would call a taxi before an ambulance, take Metro whenever I'm in the city, wouldn't ever dream of sending my kids to public schools in the city, so what should I pay for? Chronic mismanagement of money and services?

Think of it this way, maybe if D.C. offered decent services, people would move into the city (in even greater numbers than they are now), then there's less tax imbalance.
You're not going to get the authority to tax the gov't, or tax non-profits, so maybe D.C. should be looking at why corporations move to Tysons, Bethesda, Reston, Arlington, etc...rather than consider the city.

Nat isn't the person to change things. Why hasn't the mayor said "give me 10,000 people, let's stage a protest of epic proportions, ring the capital, make the USCP arrest all of us, make noise, make congress pay attention, make the American people pay attention?" No one in the rest of the US knows anything about how it is in DC. And they won't know. Even the DC contol board couldn't challenge congress on the issue of a commuter tax (I know, I was there - they made it very clear that we were not to EVER touch that topic), and it is the congress that has the ability to make things right, not Nat Gandhi.

Thank you, Marc, for highlighting this. Does your contract with the Post prevent you from submitting it as a letter to the editor in other major dailies?

Of course this brings us back to the necessity of robust representation.

On a related topic, my fear is that, given how high property values are already, congress will choose to deal with this inequity by declaring DC residents need not pay Federal Tax. Given how high property values and cost of living are already, can you imagine the devastating effects of that facile reaction on the middle class as wealthy people from around the country scramble to buy real-estate and make DC their pretextual primary residence? Can you imagine the effects of that action rippling out into the greater metro area?

My job entails me working with agencies in several area jurisdictions. From various agencies including several in DOES ,I have found DC to be at best not remotely as well run as its' counterparts in VA and MD and in many cases to be almost "anti employer". Add traffic and commuting and it is no wonder the tax base of business is so light.

after reading a prior comment, i guess i wasn't aware that the police (who generally don't like being called cops) were now a fee-for-service entity. as citizens, we don't just pay for what we individually use--but if you choose to use that potentially flawed reasoning, it would follow that the city should post toll plazas along arteries into the city to recoup for your use of the streets...

Response to A

Could you be more short sighted in your view? You really believe you don't use any DC services? Where do you believe the blanket of safety you enjoy to, from and at work comes from? What about the sidewalk you walk on? Who pays for the crossing signals that get you safely across District streets? Those roads your taxi rides take, who pays to build them?

Do you really believe you can just take, take, take from the District and it's okay to give nothing back in return?

And we wonder why we have serious quality of life issues here in DC. Let's see, DC residents pay abhorrent income taxes to support welfare of citizens who can't/won't work. And we have a huge class of citizens here who only want to work but pay no taxes and ship their money back to other countries.

Plus, property values are ridiculous so if you can afford the mortgage, the RE tax and the income tax will get you. Then if you live across the river you can drive in or metro (since there are 2 highways) which taxes the infrastructure and contributes to environmental degradation. And let's not forget NIMBY MoCo, who has to take slow surface streets or one of two metro lines (MARC doesn't count - doesn't carry enough people and is too unreliable) to add to the poor air quality for the snotty lawyers who live in Potomac to drive their Porsches and SUVs in. Oh, and even those of us who as two-income families who make far more than the average US citizens can't afford a decent condo or house in a desireable neighborhood because we weren't old enough to have bought when the market tanked, and apartment rents are shooting up 25% this year (my friends are all getting nailed this year with rent increases like that where there's no rent control).

Face it - DC is becoming a less and less desirable place to live unless you are uber-rich.

Did no one read Mr Gandhi's comments? That MD and VA are better-run and more business-friendly is exactly his point. DC cannot function the same way because of its unique position, which he explains.

DC needs more than just a representative --although it would be nice if its residents had basic democratic rights 230 years after the start of the American Revolution -- it needs Congress to stop treating it as a plaything. Sure, Marion Barry didn't exactly manage the city very well, but has Congress shown itself to be any more responsible or effective in its oversight?

Three solutions:

1. Increase the federal payment to the District (probably wont happen).
2. Give back the trans-Potomac part of the District that was stripped from it in the 19th Century (Arlington and Alexandria). Definitely wont happen.
3. Have Congress pass a law permitting a commuter tax. Will never happen.

So we will be stuck in this situation forever, cycling between prosperity and crisis. All the more reason why economic development, including a certain amount of gentrification, is essential for the District as it tries to increase its tax base. No one else is going to help us out of this dilemma.

Mr. Gandhi's comments are direct - but what solutions does he propose? District leaders are prone to complain about the conditions imposed by history, the Constitution, and Congress, and focus on improbable solutions. (Which lets them avoid responsibility for the things they can actually control.) For example to get voting representation in Congress the Council plastered a grumpy slogan on license plates - an action that means nothing to 99.999% of Americans - and declared themselves proud of their activism. It's time for creative leadership in DC - people who can negotiate effectively with Congress to achieve change. People who can change the District's bad government, horrible schools, and dismal services and prove to the country that DC is worth helping. Of course, it has been time for creative leadership in DC since 1789.

as i recall, the "taxation without representation" plates was a response to the still somewhat new "creative leadership" in congress reneging on an agreed-to compromise to give DC voting rights in congress. the sole (and plainly stated) reason that DC has no vote in congress since the late 90's is because DC votes overwhelmingly democratic.

I live in VA but my job has had me work ing MD and DC. Each time, I paid income taxes to VA, not MD or DC. If DC is able to tax non-residents, then other states may then follow likewise.

When I worked in DC, the office was at HUD which was 40 miles from home, just across the river. Only the final 1.5 miles of the commute was in DC. Taxing my salary because I used 1.5 miles of DC roadway twice a day is is pretty steep, don't you think? Oh sure, some will point out that DC also provides security services (which was primarily needed in the parking garage that charged $15/day and wasn't responsible for any damages to your vehicle). OK, but what about the other 38.5 miles of roadway and security that VA provides me the other 15 hours of the day when I'm not in DC?

Perhaps if DC made the city livable, people would want to move there to live. However, with such and inept police force and other goverment services (DMV, schools, etc.), why would anyone want to move there? Nice place to work but who'd want to live there?

If DC ends up taxing non-residents, then businesses would move out of the city in order to keep there staff.

Marc, excuse me but how much exactly is that Federal transfer payment to the District government intended to compensate for the federally owned real estate?

I agree with you that the City pays for a lot of things because it is a federal city but you also don't mention what the federal government does here that it doesn't do elsewhere (e.g., the Capital Hill Police, Park Police and Uniformed Secret Service, which in my neighborhood are move visible than the MPD).

I commute from Virginia but please don't for a second don't think I don't pay DC taxes. Every dime I spend in this city is taxed at 8% from my daily lunch to my parking to the books I buy to my Christmas and birthday gifts I purchase here. The lease in my privately owned office is taxed as is the building. I use no DC services, my children don't attend DC schools, and I don't use the libraries or other social services. I dare say that you can say the same about the vast majority of my fellow commuters.

My family has lived in this area since the Revolution and members have lived in the District since it was created. Griping about this stuff is old hat and very tired. The other thing that hasn't changed is the corrupt and incompetent city administration. Attempt to put a commuter tax in place and you'll sign the city's death warrant. No one will stay but the federal employees and most of them will be looking to leave.

That can't be any worse than sticking a "we remember 9-11" or "support out troops" bumper sticker on your SUV and declaring your patriotic burden complete, could it?

>For example to get voting representation in Congress the Council plastered a grumpy slogan on license plates - an action that means nothing to 99.999% of Americans - and declared themselves proud of their activism.

A's comments are so off the wall as to be a classic example of exactly why DC is in the precarious postion that it is in. No other city has to provide the services to non citizens (except possibly NYC with the UN) that DC needs to. Worse, it seems that every time something goes wrong, it's "you people in Washington". Funny, the 435 voting members of Congress & 100 Senators were elected by everyone except DC residents...but A and his/her ilk forget that.

Meridian has some good ideas. The second might help, but there is another. Recession. Give back everything but a Federal enclave, with only one resident. DC could then simply be a part of Maryland, and manage to find ways to tax functions (you want a motorcycle escort for VPOTUS, fine, gonna cost you)

ABH:
Other juristictions do have tax reciprocity. Think PA and OH, and NJ and NY.

MD and VA people need to understand that tax reciprocity does not increase their overall tax burden, it mearly shifts dollars from one account to another. This is not to say that lawmakers from MD and VA would not miss those tax dollars and come asking their residents for additional ones.

Pay as you go logic is typical of the greed non-DC residents display when casting their eyes upon the current cesspool of services DC offers. I am a resident of Howard County, Maryland, and am in DC on a daily basis for work. Call me just another high-taxing liberal, but I believe people should pay for what they use in a holistic sense, because services are not offered a la carte by the government ANYWHERE IN THE COUNTRY!While it seems easy to think, I don't use cops, so why should I pay for them, it's because you're presence and those around you necessitate those officers. And by the way, "A," I'm sure you wouldn't object to a cop on duty arresting a person trying to mug you. My question is this: Would you tip him, write the city a check, or just complain some more?

Commuters from MD and VA seem to think they can have their cake and eat it too- commute into DC everyday for work and then rip on the city for providing poor services. Get with the program: Our nation's capital is becoming an international embarrassment. The right to vote is a start, commuter taxes and federal funding should be a given. Shame on you, MD and VA commuters!

I'm with Catcher50, create a Federal enclave that contains only Federal Gov't buildings and give the rest to MD. The only people allowed to live in the Federal Enclave would be the Marines at the Marines Barracks. Everyone else would be MD residents and would vote as such. They may even make up a new MD district and have their own representative in congress and in the MD state gov't. Then DC wouldn't have to worry about providing services as a state would as it would only be a city like NYC, LA, etc.

But would DC residents go for that? If not, why?

jterp,

MD and VA commuters are paying taxes to the city via Federal income taxes. This money this then given to DC. If DC was to tax non-residents from MD and VA (after all, these would be the states most affected as you don't see many people comuting from PA, TN, or NC to DC on a daily basis, do you?) then VA and MD would absorb an unfair burden of supporting the nation's capital. By the Federal Gov't giving money to DC, all the states then share the burden more equally.

A generational gap -

1) what's the rest of the phrase to: taxation without representation?
2) who said it?

Neither of my kids know.

Actually, it has been an international embarrassment. It's not new. Fisher isn't reporting on anything new, and Gandhi isn't stating something that hasn't already been said.

Congress thinks the city gets enough aid, but they mismanage their funds. And until DC manages their funds better, congress won't give any more. It's up to the DC government to turn thinks around in DC. Hand outs won't help solve problems. The local gov't will just find ways to waste more. Stop complaining about what you don't have, and make good use of what you do! Then maybe the rest of the US will take DC seriously.

ABH,

I fully realize the federal goevernment is giving the District money. My point is that clearly this is not enough. DC is in a unique position because under the current structure, there are very few people it can tax. Also, in terms of:

"VA and MD would absorb an unfair burden of supporting the nation's capital."

of course they would. That's the whole point- those are the people currently draining DC of resources. All states bear a portion of the responsibility for upkeeping the District as the nation's capital, but VA and MD bear a unique responsibility because their residents have the privilege of working in DC. They also bear a greater responsibility as a result- people from Nebraska do not commute to DC for work, so I don't expect them to pay above their standard federal tax to upkeep roads. However, residents from Alexandria, Potomac, etc. should help out more than they are right now.

Why does the retrocession argument get glossed over so often and so quickly? If the city reunited with Maryland, perhaps as a new county, that would solve the representation problem, add at least one Congressional seat for Maryland, and provide solutions for some of the other structural problems through governmental mechanisms (think DMV, think prison system, think MDOT) already in place in Maryland.
It would take the city out of its "red headed stepchild" relationship with the federal government.

I have a little problem with the earlier post characterizing the Virginia retrocession as "stripping away" part of the district. Residents of the affected area (present day Arlington and a small portion of Alexandria) voted in favor of a return to Virginia and petitioned Congress. The Virginia House of Delegates approved the change and Congress passed a bill making it official. Sounds a lot like democracy in action to me.

People like JTERP like to represent that all commuters are using the services that account for the bulk of DC's expenditures. Yes, I agree that fire and police are 'used', even if they are not currently fighting a fire or responding to a robbery. However, let's get real here - look at the budget. By far the biggest expenditure of city dollars is in the public school system (a disaster, mostly due to one-parent households and teachers' unions that want to preserve jobs and bureaucracy rather than encourage excellence), and services to poor people (health care being #1). What commuter is 'using' those expenditures?

Create the enclave and give the dirtbag areas back to MD. Hell, their politics are already aligned.

Let's reduce the "District" to the true federal district surrounding the mall, then turn the rest over to Maryland. That gives the city a state to back it up, but more importantly, it gets Congress out of the equation. Why does anybody think they can run a city any better than they can Amtrak or the post office?

i vote for a shrunk down federal enclave also. it makes geographic sense for the city of washington to be a part of maryland. its silly that washington's neighborhoods are a part of a federal district.

Brian - the post office posted a several billion dollar surplus last year. If DC were run as well as the post office is now, this blog entry would be about some other city.

JD,

This can be hard to comprehend at times, but when money is put into one service by a city government, it means that money cannot go to another source. When a city has to put extra money into its police/fire units, that means that money cannot be spent on schools. I agree, DC schools are pretty bad.

In addition, all of the space that commuters use for their work buildings, including all of that federal government, tax exempt property, has to take money out of the district somewhere. This means DC cannot recoup remotely the value it should from property taxes. Commuters realize the benefits of this lack of taxation through their salaries. If a city cannot tax most of its prime real estate, how can it hope to catch up with burgeoning school and health care costs.

Granted, JD, you have probably skimmed this post at best by now (I am assuming you to be a VA fiscal conservative republican based up your final comments.) However, I have one final point to make to those of you still reading. While we quibble over whether this is Congress's fault for not giving DC enough money, or if it's the council's fault for mismanaging funds, or if it's the commuters fault for not paying their fair share, one thing is certain: our nation's capital is becoming an urban inferno laced with poor schools, poverty, homelessness and crime. Unfortunately for posters such as ABH and JD, true realization of this disaster probably will not come until they themselves are placed in peril due to the poor services proferred by the district- a hospital visit during the workday, a theft on the way to their car, or a blade slashing them on their way through a trendy are of the city. Wake up to this crisis now while we still have a chance of making DC into the gem it should be.

>>By far the biggest expenditure of city dollars is in the public school system (a disaster, mostly due to one-parent households and teachers' unions that want to preserve jobs and bureaucracy rather than encourage excellence), and services to poor people (health care being #1). What commuter is 'using' those expenditures?<<

Commuters use those expenditures to excersise their moral principals of compassion, empathy, and decency. They also use those expendetures to physically protect themselves from a completely uneducated populace that out of bordeom from lack of schools and jobs would turn to robbing those comuters and would spread disease, killing those comuters.

And what, exactly, would be in it for Maryland? An even more politically-imbalanced state, more Medicaid and welfare responsibilities, and...?

According to the DC Budget Office for Fiscal Year 2005:

Where The Money Goes
Human support services (mainly Medicaid & Medicare): 39.9%
Public works: 4.6%
Public safety and justice: 15.5%
Economic development and regulation: 4.2%
Governmental direction and support: 9.6%
Interest on long-term: debt 3.0%
Public transportation: 2.5%
Public education system: 20.6%

DC posted a budget surplus of $369,668,000. Although revenues were higher than budgeted, most of this surplus was the result due to decreased spending. Sounds like DC is doing something right.

The notion that DC is so badly run that it hasn't "earned" the right to complain doesn't match the numbers. And I don't see any other cities or states having to prove they're well-run before they get representation or the ability to run themselves.

Source: http://cfo.dc.gov/cfo/frames.asp?doc=/cfo/lib/cfo/cafr/2005/2005_citizen_financial_report.pdf

JD should take a closer look at the DCPS budget. Much of the expenditure is not because of "one parent families" (tell me that that is not a code word). There are two overriding causes for the expenditures.

1. Old and outdated buildings, which are difficult to repair and, unfortunately, without true control over finances, they cannot be torn down and rebuilt over a 5 - 10 year period. That would be cheaper and more efficient.

2. Special needs children. A goodly number of these are, in fact, only marginally handicapped (ADD, etc.) and could probably be handled "in house". Instead, the district is forced to foot the bill to send these kids to expensive private schools, most of which are in MD & VA. MD & VA kids with the same level of problem are simply dealt with in the school system.

Also, the note about Retrocession & VA. You might want to check the date on that. Much of that occurred before 1860. There was a specific issue involved, which resolved itself over the period 1861 - 1865. Might want to check almost any US history book. Generally, this is considered an important "watershed" event.

So how about we tax tourists, too? They use up tons of resources when they swarm into town. How about this: anyone who doesn't know the phrase "walk left, stand right" gets to pay good, hefty tax for the privilege of being here. Add it in as a tax on their plane tickets, or possibly their hotel bills, or something. They're a drain, just like how commuters who pay metro fare, eat in DC restaurants, shop in DC stores, etc. are such a drain on the resources here.

Honestly, commuter taxes seem pretty short-sighted to me. I don't see how it wouldn't drive commuting employees back into the suburbs, looking for jobs in MD and NoVa - there would be a pay cut, but they'd have to deal with neither a "commuter tax" nor DC traffic/Metro.

It is frustrating to see DC get the sticky end of the lollipop on so many budget issues, but at the same time, it's not as though the city government is made up of the best financial geniuses in the world (remember how much the new stadium has ended up costing - and how ridiculous it is, seeing as how the current one is still good?). A commuter tax might bring in greater funds in the short term (before non-governmental firms and employees start relocating), but until DC changes its management style, and Congress changes its stupidity (pipe dream, I know), it just won't help.

Fixing DC government would help but does little to address the significant structural problems that have existed in the feds' stewardship of DC -- from its origins in the Constitution to the neglect of poorer areas under the commissioner system. Then look at congressional oversight -- from the chairmanship of DC subcommittees in which a succession of southerners with racist tendencies held sway over DC affairs, and now, when the DC appropriations chair has recently been used by the Appropriations Committee as punishment for "cardinals" who betray House Republican leadership.

There's shame and blame to go all around. Congress and DC MUST fix this problem; if they don't, the problems will get worse, and you won't be able to outrun them no matter how hard you try.

Commuters should bring their own lunches and not buy anything in DC for a month. When sales tax revenues plunge, and restaurants start laying off staff, the DC government might appreciate how much revenue we bring in.

To: Fallschurch and others

Do people really not understand the difference between buying lunch in DC (an exchange of money for a corresponding service) and using DC roads, sidewalks, police officers and firefighters (for which non-residents pay nothing??

Jterp - but what benefit does MD or VA get if their citizens are taxed by DC and not by the state that they live in? Their residents are only in DC to work, not to live. Most people spend more time where they live.

Also, if all MD and VA residents who worked in DC were to move into DC, could DC accomodate that increase in population?

It would probably be helpful if many of the D.C. critics posting here ever set foot in the city. The office vacancy rate in the District is extraordinarily low, prompting massive building investment; the city skyline these days is a tangle of construction cranes. Demand for housing is also strong; neighborhood after neighborhood is home to new condo projects and rehabilitated town homes. Retailers can't wait to get into the District. New bars, restaurants, galleries, boutiques, and theaters arrive every day.

Fisher is wrong to understate the growing tax base in the District, and suburban critics are foolish to declare Washington an urban wasteland when they've clearly not seen the place, or at least ventured beyond the Mall.

"DC posted a budget surplus of $369,668,000."

Then why do we need a commuter tax? Either DC is in a tight place and they need commuters to pay up, or they're financially sound and able to pay for all the services they want (whether they can, due to shoddy Congressional oversight, is another matter).

Seriously, does anyone remember the story of those two fellas who got married in Boston (I want to say one of them worked at the GAO), asked the DC tax folks the fairly innocent question of whether or not they could file jointly on their city taxes, and some moron in Congress threatened to screw with DC's budget if those two guys could file jointly? Just one of many examples of how Congress treats us like crap here. Before we can fairly ask VA and MD commuters for their money, we have to have a way to manage our own money without Congress diddling us.

Have you ever heard of sales taxes?

Jterp: "...until they themselves are placed in peril due to the poor services proferred by the district- a hospital visit during the workday, a theft on the way to their car, or a blade slashing them..."

Exactly why I no longer go to DC. Spending any money there is like rewarding incompetence,

Huh, mizbinkley?? Commuters do pay sales taxes and surcharges, which yes, are not the same as income taxes, but taxes just the same. I think Fallschurch means that we pay a 10% or so tax on the food we get in a restaurant. That tax goes to DC, to pay for DC roads, sidewalks, police officers and firefighters. It would be an interesting experiment if MD and VA commuters kept their wallets shut for even a week.

Re: Comment A

This is exactly the person who you meet at a conference in say Texas, and when the discussion comes around to where are you from, they reply Washington. Never mentioning Dale City or some of these other places they trundle in from every work day. Since these people find it so hard to recognize the importance of the city in the economic life of the entire region. We would all be better served if they just got a job in VA and stayed out of the city and out of the dialouge.

Hey Catcher, you like my 'codeword', huh? Well, relax, this isn't a slam at 'those people'. I'm just saying, DC schools are worst in the country (highest per-pupil costs, lowest performance, or at least that was the case a couple years ago when I read about it) largely because of the fact that 'parents' mostly don't care about keeping their kids in school, childless before marriage, etc. Hence they need social services like crazy, they contribute little/nothing to society, they perpetuate the cycle, and DC gets more crime and burden instead of tax rev.

And anyone who doubts that the federal presence in DC is anything other than a NET POSITIVE to DC is crazy. If the feds were located in, say, New York (similar to most countries where the capitol is in the biggest town, think London, Paris, Moscow, Tokyo, etc), would all the universities, K street lobbyists, conventions, cab companies, etc even exist in DC? I seriously doubt it.

Hotel rooms are taxed, car rentals taxed, meals are taxed, sales taxes, liquor taxes, and on and on. And thanks to MizBinkley with the straight dope on where DC budget dollars go, schools and healthcare as I suspected.

Interesting that only about 20% of budget is roads and public safety.

And Jterp, after *reading* your entire post, I can say that I doubt DC will ever become a gem as long as it's run by the current crop of politicians. Decisions today are made based on patronage, corruption, and race, not what's best for the town - the baseball stadium being exhibit A.

ABH-

>>what benefit does MD or VA get if their citizens are taxed by DC and not by the state that they live in? Their residents are only in DC to work, not to live. Most people spend more time where they live>Exactly why I no longer go to DC. Spending any money there is like rewarding incompetence<<

And really, just very well done with this line! Simply spectacular. You're NIMBY stripes shine through. Please, leave the district to those of us who want to take care of it.

There is no question that it's ridiculously unfair that for some bizzare reason (most likely cause Republicans run the show, and DC is very Democratic) the residents of the District are not represented in Congress. It is a blatant violation of democracy and I have yet to see a valid reason why it is so. That said, heaping all the blame for the district's woes on commuters is absurd. As many people have pointed out here, they do contribute to the tax base via the very high sales tax in the city. Bringing people into the city to spend money on things like food and goods benefits the city. It's not merely the "exchange" of goods and services that someone pointed out. If that were the case, the national current account deficit wouldn't be a problem...we're merely "exchanging" our money for chinese goods. On top of that, those goods and services are taxed. The federal government should offer money up to the district for public safety and roads because that benefits it's employees...but that's not gonna happen, since people can't even agree to upgrade metro, which clearly benefits federal employees. I personally think a commuter tax would be a disaster, more businesses would merely move to Tysons, Reston, etc. so they could actually hire employees. And it would really screw the federal employees, because the federal government is unlikely to move.

"You're NIMBY stripes shine through."

I can't believe nobody has made a crack about DC education yet . . .

Sales tax DOES generate revenue for the District from non-residents, primarily through the hospitality industry (which basically just applies to non-resident tourists) and restaurants (tourists and non-tourists).

I'm just not convinced that restaurant sales tax revenue from commuters actually covers their usage of DC services (anyone have any numbers on that?).

After all, you could brown-bag your lunch everyday and pay the city absolutely nothing--while still using the city's services.

With all of the jabs being thrown out there, let me ask a simple question (I honestly don't know the answer).

Do DC residents who work in VA or MD have to pay VA/MD state income taxes? If so, I assume they get an offset of their DC taxes, right?

Mizbinkley: in 2004, sales & use taxes accounted for roughly 671 million in revenue. Revenue for that year was about 4.03 billion. That's close to 17% revenue, but I don't know how much comes from DC residents, versus commuters and tourists. These numbers are available on the DC website. But if even 1/8 of the sales & tax revenue is from non-residents, that almost completely pays for transportation (according to the budget breakdown posted above).

To Simple Question:
You asked:
"Do DC residents who work in VA or MD have to pay VA/MD state income taxes? If so, I assume they get an offset of their DC taxes, right?"

That would be the whole idea of tax reciprocity. When people ask to tax commuters, tax reciprocity is the working model they point to as an example. NY and NJ do it, for example.

I know of no genuine reason why it couldn't work here.

Except, of course, that it's far more easy, even though it hamper's the city's planning, to get an equal contribution from 50 states than it is to ask for tax reciprocity which would significantly deplete the coffers of only 2, MD and VA.

If MD and VA want to continue requiring DC and the other 48 states subsidize services for their citizens, who aside from DC cares enough to take them to the mat? And DC lacks negotiating muscle.

As a DC resident, control of our budget and representative government seem to me a chicken/egg situation in this regard.

I agree with you 100%, "The District is unique in many ways." It's the only city in the United States that doesn't allow law-abiding citizens to own a hangun (unconstitutional for sure) which could easily bring in more taxes. The criminals have no problem obtaining a gun! And you wonder why Congress give you more funding...I say, get rid of the DC Council, that's a sizable pot of funding for DC, they seem to blame problems on everyone else except themselves. Get rid of overtime for the police force, put them on a salary. Decent salary, though, and based on performance...if they're not performing, they'll look for another job, trust me.
Lastly, the workers that come to DC are contributing to your economy...if they eat breakfast, lunch or dinner, they're taxed, if they drive on a daily basis, they're definitely ticketed more than you can imagine and I'm sure that most play the lottery, stop your whining, Nat Gandhi, and come up with some viable solutions to the problems.

Although I enjoy the comments...a poster above mentions that 65% of the D.C. budget goes to Schools and Medicare/Social Services. Add in the 2.5% for METRO...well VA pays for METRO too. So without jabbing at the 9.6% of the budget for "government support" we're looking at 67.5% of the DC budget that you can't even argue commuters make use of....

So I should pay D.C. taxes (probably taxed higher than my VA income tax...one of the lowest in the nation), when I've only seen a D.C. cop twice - sorry in the area I work in its the Federal Officers that seem to be 99.9% of the presence, don't use many other services, wait other than sidewalks...which I believe in the Commercial district have to be maintained by the buildings...not the city.

I pay enough through sales/restaurant taxes to cover my incremental use of DC services. D.C. should not be asking commuters to subsidize a welfare state.

Thanks for the info, Mark. I have a basic understanding of tax reciprocity, but I just wasn't sure if VA and MD currently tax DC residents who work in the suburbs. I know that Congress has been unwilling to allow DC to tax nonresident workers, but it would seem that VA and MD would not be under a similar restriction from taxing nonresident workers (i.e., those from DC).

If DC residents who work in VA/MD have to pay VA/MD income taxes (even with an offset), but VA/MD residents who work in DC do not have to pay DC income taxes, the restriction on DC leaders to tax nonresidents would seem even more inequitable.

I know, my question falls squarely within the category of "basic."

A,

I'd really just like to know where this greed comes from. You remind me of the house party guest who feels that, since he brought a couple of beers, gets full use of the house, pool, and the case of Dom Perignon. Granted, you will probably make some comment about how DC services aren't close to that quality, but it's the same basic argument.

I'm not going to once again layout the chain of actions that result in why commuters are partly responsible for the atrocious conditions of DC schools/health care. I will say this: I am simply appalled by your utter lack of any sense of responsibility for the city where you work. Please, A, do the rest of us a favor. Find a job where you can work from home, so that you really do pay for ALL of the services you use!

Actually, Jterp, a more apt analogy would be that A brought the beer, helped himself (herself?) to the Dom, found out someone peed in the pool, noticed the otherwise nice house was infested with roaches, and then got approached by the homeowner who said, "Thanks for the beer, but I'm going to need you to fix this place up for me."

Arguing for commuter taxes is fine - there are some great ones out there - but commuters pay sales taxes, pay for Metro, pay federal income taxes (and the federal government gives DC a hunk of change every year). It's appalling that there's no representation in Congress, but, that aside, more blame lies with DC voters consistenly voting for often-inept local government officials. If DC pays more per student than any other region, and still has dilapidated schools and horrible education, you can't really blame commuters for that.

Maybe when DC shapes up a bit (which would likely require control of the DC economy - which could happen if MD and VA did the right thing and advocated for DC in Congress), we can talk about commuter taxes. Until then, it's rather unfair to ask them to throw money at problems that can't be fixed with funding alone.

SQ:
There is no provision for DC Residents who work in MD/VA to be taxed there any more than there is for the inverse. Even if there was, I'd bank on a net + to DC coffers, so long as it ran both ways.

Living in the district the last 20 years, I can understand the debate. Since people from MD and VA rarely travel, one can understand that they would not know about the commuter taxes that are imposed on the surburban workes of most big cities. Of course, these cities have not had to prove their worth for representation but to the MD and VA patriotic commuter, that makes no difference.

Also, if one actually reads the report, ( I know math skills in this area are not good but I thought people could read), it clearly states that since the district has to preform state/local functions, it will always run a deficit. And since it cannot tax its largest employers NOR even a third of its propery NOR the other 13 largest employess, DC will always be fighting for its fiscal life. Now I wonder if MD and VA can tax its largest employers?

So if DC was the most efficient run govt, it would still run a debt right off the bat!

Tax consumption. There are other taxes than income taxes. If the District wishes to tax professionals who come to work in DC, then place a value added tax on everything.

Tax services. A 1% lawyers and lobbying service tax would more than make up for any shortfall, I am sure. Tax elective medical procedures, fertility treatments, "enhancement" plastic surgery procedures. Tax medical insurance premiums, fire insurance premiums, automobile insurance premiums. Tax the labor on car repairs.

Put a sin tax on fast food. People are trapped, are they going to go into MD or VA to eat lunch? Put a real sin tax on high-priced, "three martini" lunches -- get thos lawyers and lobbyists twice!

Tax professional education services. Not undergraduate degrees, but professional degrees, continuing education certificates, etc. These a for-profit education services, tax them accordingly.

Drop the income tax, drop business profit taxes, TAX CONSUMPTION.

Oh yes, and collect service tax on shipped product deliveries. Now that wouldn't be Internet purchases that are taxed, but the delivery service itself, tax at a percentage of the value of the delivered product (wink, wink).

Finally, with the advent of advanced RFI technology, collect tolls on all the major roads leading into (er, out of?) the District. Tokyo has a "downtown" tax, requiring drivers to have a RFI tag for access to downtown areas. Exempt tourists, or make them pick up a tag and place RFT collectors and video cameras on all the bridges and major highways. If people want to sneak in on Mass. Ave, let them live with DC traffic lights.

And while we are at it tax those annoying tourist buses.

Funny how nobody, when talking about DC, proposes what Republicans see as a solution to federal deficit problems: "Reduce taxes; let people keep more of their hard-earned money."
The DC government could do many, many things cheaper. That would help, but the real problem is that demands are increased and federal payments lowered by 535 people in Congress, only eight or ten of whom have much reason to care about the District. That being the case, recession may be the best idea.

I fail to understand how a commuter tax could do anything but help. It could probably only be enacted with reciprocity, with (theoretically, anyway) means that it wouldn't increase any taxpayer's total obligation. Given that we know that THAT's a bunch of hooey, it might theoretically reduce the number of workers willing to commute into the District (is "D.C." a bad word now, like "P.G."?), but that would only be a good thing in the long run, right? Either the jobs would be taken over by D.C. residents, or would be moved offshore (as it were), reducing the burden on the District to provide services for all of those non-taxpaying interlopers.

Win-win, I think.

To Simple question,

I have several coworkers who live in DC (Mt Pleasant, the Hill, Foggy Bottom, U St, etc.) but work out around the beltway in MD. And yes, MD does tax part of their salary in a commuter tax which is then offset on their DC tax return by being able to deduct it as taxes already paid, thus lowering their tax burden. So, my friend who make $38,000 a year, pays MD $4,400 and thus DC only taxes the remaining $33,600. But DC cannot do the inverse to people who commute into the District because of federal law.

It is interesting that everything has these radical ideas. Have any of you stop to think how the District would get any of these ideas done? The District can not even fund a lobbying effort for voting rights due to Congress. And somehow we are supposed to become a part of MD? Incredulous. All of our laws at judged by Congress. Yet, the people on this board comment as if DC can just do whatever it wants.