Governor Swift proposes two days of sales tax relief

BOSTON – In a bid to stimulate retail sales as the Christmas shopping season gets started, Governor Swift proposed a two-day moratorium on collection of the state’s retail sales tax. Swift would offset the anticipated $35 million loss in revenue to the state with money from the state’s Tax Reduction Fund, a repository of surplus tax revenue. Legislative approval would be necessary and the Boston Globe said last week that was far from a done deal. Elsewhere reaction was mixed, with retailers and tourism officials predictably hailing the proposal while some economists were skeptical. The Globe quoted Wayne Ayers, chief economist for FleetBoston Financial Corp., as saying, “It makes for good headlines, but I’m not sure it’s good for the economy.”