Tax Sex

While the Governor and the Washington State Legislature wrestles with a budget deficit and are looking at ways of generating new tax revenue, they should be looking at a new “sin tax.”

Tax sex. That will bring in millions of dollars in new revenues and the people will pay it voluntarily.

Here’s how it would work. Every adult in Washington state would have to pay a tax (amount to be decided) every time he or she had sex. The money would be collected monthly and would be voluntary. No one would have to pay, but all of those who did, would be listed. And, the list would be open to public inspection. That way, everyone knew who was paying and who wasn’t.

Most men would pay the tax every month, even if they hadn’t engaged in sex, because it would be important for their masculine ego. Those particularly apt to pay would be young men.

OK, the idea’s a little far-fetched, but if you’re going to look at new taxes as a means to balance the state budget, you should really look at all of the ways.

Most of other ones are about tapped out. We just raised the price of cigarettes by several dollars a pack. There isn’t much more money to be pulled from smokers. We raised the tax on pop and bottled water.  Our liquor taxes are already one of the highest in the nation, and two initiatives this year may take the state out of the liquor business.

Gambling is about the only sin we have left with some taxing value to it, but we’ve let the Indian tribes siphon off the bulk of the profit from gambling. So unless we’re willing to open up gambling to the private sector, and here we’re talking about slot machines, then we really can’t make much money on gambling.

It looks to me like the only sin left to tax is sex, and since it’s voluntary, no one can complain too much.

I suspect our legislature has not looked at the mating ritual as a means to salvation of the state budget but it has potential.

Of course, that means that each legislator would have to pay the tax as well, and with public disclosure required it’s just another activity they would have to defend during re-election.

I can see it now, “And you say you paid, how much is sex taxes last year Senator?”