Patrick touts progressive income tax

DANVERS ? Gov. Deval Patrick said he prefers a “progressive income tax,” rather than a flat tax while answering questions during a breakfast event Wednesday morning sponsored by the North Shore Chamber of Commerce at Danversport Yacht Club.Patrick’s comments provoked a quick response from Republican gubernatorial candidate Charles Baker.”I’d like to know who Gov. Patrick plans to raise taxes on next. He’s already begun his next campaign to raise taxes in Massachusetts and the voters should know who’s going to be hit with his next tax hike,” Baker said. “Gov. Patrick needs to understand that after 100,000 lost jobs, eight tax increases and $3 billion in excess spending, voters have had enough of his tax-and-spend policies.”The last time voters were asked their preference to move to a progressive income tax was in 1994, when the ballot question was overwhelmingly defeated 70 percent to 30 percent, Baker said.Patrick’s campaign later in the day sent out a statement saying the governor had no plans if reelected to a second term to change the state Constitution to accommodate a progressive tax.”The governor did not ?outline a plan’ but simply responded to a question about tax fairness and answered as he has in the past by stating the obvious ? a progressive income tax is more fair than our current system, because for the vast majority of people in Massachusetts, it means a tax cut, not a tax increase,” Patrick spokesman Alex Goldstein said in a statement to the State House News Service.At the breakfast event, Democratic incumbent governor maintained his opinion that not every road construction job site requires a uniformed police officer to direct traffic. The 49 other states commonly use civilians as flagmen, he said, noting that by adopting that system in Massachusetts, between $11 million and $15 million have been saved.Those millions of dollars can be used for road and bridge improvements, he said.Patrick also opined that reducing the state sales tax rate from 6.25 percent to its former 5-percent level could result in increased public transportation costs, higher bridge and road tolls, as well as a spike in property taxes.Most of the governor’s address emphasized education, innovation and infrastructure, described as the three key components of his administration’s growth strategy.On education, the governor said special-needs students and those struggling to learn the English language are stuck in the so-called achievement gap. The governor emphasized that Massachusetts is currently at the highest level in state history for financial investment in public schools and the creation of other innovative educational institutions.Speaking of marketplace innovation, Patrick cited the growth on the North Shore of the life sciences industry and robotics. The state has invested $190 million in life sciences in the past two years, funds that have leveraged $250 million in private investment, he said.”It’s not your father’s Route 128,” he said.”We are the third largest center of video gaming in the country,” he said.The governor said robotics companies on the North Shore are developing and manufacturing robots that can do everything from clean a home to defuse a roadside bomb.”We are also the largest exporter of medical devices,” he said.The Patrick administration decision to support alternative energy, specifically wind power, has also paid off, the governor said. The nation’s first offshore wind farm, slated for construction off Cape Cod, is a prime example of that initiative, as is the planned wind turbine blade testing facility in Charlestown.Bridges, roads and other infrastructure have been allowed to deteriorate while taxpayer funds went to pay for the Big Dig ? the suppression of Boston’s central artery below ground, Patrick said. The governor described the massive public works project as something akin to doing open heart surgery on a patient while he’s playing tennis.