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Showing Original Post only (View all)Georgia passes tax bill punishing Delta for NRA split [View all]
Source: Axios
Georgia lawmakers on Thursday approved a tax bill that is stripped of a jet fuel tax break, likely in retaliation for Delta Air Lines' decision to end its discount program with the NRA, reports the AP. The bill will now go to the desk of Republican Gov. Nathan Deal, who has said he will "sign it in whatever form it passed."
Why it matters: Georgias Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle pledged to kill the tax break unless Delta fully reinstates its relationship with the NRA, tweeting on Monday, "Corporations cannot attack conservatives and expect us not to fight back." Barring a veto from Gov. Deal, Cagle will have succeeded in punishing the city of Atlanta's No. 1 employer a highly unusual and partisan move that is sure to receive backlash.
Read more: https://www.axios.com/georgia-votes-to-punish-delta-for-nra-split-c7439cd1-feff-4a8f-b890-359956cc63f7.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=organic&utm_content=1100&utm_term=politics
More info:
Pro-gun Georgia lawmakers scored a political victory Thursday over Delta Air Lines, making good on Republican threats to deny the company a hefty tax break after it cut ties with the National Rifle Association in the wake of the deadly shooting at a Florida high school.
The state House and Senate within hours of each other passed a sweeping tax bill that Republicans had amended to strip out a sales tax exemption on jet fuel. Atlanta-based Delta would have been the prime beneficiary of the tax break, which would have been worth an estimated $38 million.
The political battle at the Georgia Capitol was the latest in a renewed debate over gun control and school safety after the Feb. 14 shooting. GOP Gov. Nathan Deal criticized the Delta controversy as an "unbecoming squabble" but said he would sign the broader tax measure in whatever form it passed.
The Senate's presiding officer is Republican Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, who vowed Monday to stop any tax break that would benefit Delta sparking a showdown at the state Capitol between gun-rights supporters and one of Georgia's largest private employers.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/georgia-senate-approves-tax-bill-snubbing-delta-nra-53446838