By AP
Nashville, TN – Governor Phil Bredesen is challenging lawmakers to either approve his plan to eliminate a tax exemption for cable bills or to find another way to restore funding for higher education and save 200 state employees' jobs. The Democratic governor said in an interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday that: "You've got to move beyond saying 'I don't like this,' and into 'I don't like this, and here's how we plan to fix it."'
The plan to lift the tax break on the first $15 of a cable bill is part of the governor's plan to raise about $49 million in new revenue a year. Republicans were quick to announce they wouldn't go along with the proposal. Bredesen said the fact that it's an election year for all House members and half of the Senate shouldn't be a valid excuse for opposing the tax.