Dear Editor:

The April 13 edition of The Collegian includes excellent coverage on the budget cuts being made at South Dakota State University, thanks to the legislature.

It is worth noting that South Dakota has neither a state personal income tax nor a corporate income tax. It also does not tax sales made in the state by entities outside the state, as in the case of Internet sales. The income tax lost by one vote in the early 1970s and has not gained traction since then. Former Gov. Bill Janklow made a valiant but unsuccessful effort to broaden the sales tax to include companies that compete with South Dakota businesses but do not have to collect the tax.

If we are not willing to pay (or collect) taxes, then massive budget cuts will continue in South Dakota. Nationally, if we see tax cutting as a goal, we will see massive cuts in federal spending. Land grant universities, such as SDSU, receive millions in federal dollars, so SDSU may have seen only a glimpse of what is yet to come.

Congratulations on an excellent newspaper.

Sincerely,

Allan Burke

SDSU 1970