Gov.Peter Shumlin traveled to Los Angeles on Monday to attend the Democratic Governors Association meeting. Twenty two Democratic governors are attending and discussions are naturally expected to include how to tackle their state’s budget crisis. While in Los Angeles Shumlin might get wind of New York’s Andrew Cuomo and California Governor Jerry Brown plans to have upper income earners help with their state’s budget problems by pay higher taxes.

Brown said he’d ask voters to raise income taxes on individuals making more than $250,000 a year and boost the sales levy. Cuomo said he wants an income-tax overhaul that would place a higher burden [burden!] on top earners.

Scary political third rail stuff to be sure. However growing middle-class awareness of how  unfairly the pie is divided has been headlined by Occupy movements and may lessen the burden of political fear and allow politicians to torque-up their courage levels. Governor Shumlin might recall last year some 50 wealthy Vermonters actually requested a temporary tax increase surcharge to help shoulder their fair share. Also a recent study in Vermont showed that:

“The effects of taxes on migration are, at most, small—so small that states that raise income taxes on the wealthiest households will see a substantial net gain in revenue.”

So spare Vermonters the perennial warning that wealthy Vermonters will flee for the borders if the state raises their income taxes. No Democrat should ever bother hauling that out and spreading it on the fields again.

Nationally Warren Buffet, other all around rich people and even a group called Patriotic Millionaires are publically support tax increases for their own income brackets. And significantly Republican Bruce Bartlett a former member of the Reagan and GHW Bush administration closes a piece in the New York Times today with the following:  

But the idea that the rich cannot or should not pay more should be dismissed out of hand. They can and must pay more; the only question is how best to do it.

So Governor, do enjoy LA and by all means have a talk with Andrew and Jerry.