$956.30 a year

Yes, that was me at the Legislative Plaza reminding legislators as they drove into work this morning that the surplus tax receipts wasn't their money and they should give it back.

NewsChannel 5 posts a brief note about the Tennessee Tax Revolt protest this morning. However, they say the surplus is "$1.3 million".

The group is asking elected officials to return part of the state's one $1.3 million surplus, in the form of tax breaks.

That should be BILLION, with a "B". And I'm not surprised at the error. It's nearly impossible to believe that they collected $1.3 Billion in extra cash.

In preparing for the protest I wondered if putting a dollar amount on the sign would be impactful. Since I save my receipts it was possible for me to figure out what this family of six paid in tax for groceries. That amount came to $956.30. It was impactful. I was surprised and so was everyone else I talked with.

We stayed through the pouring rain, hid during the lightening, and were glad to see a number of thumbs up from legislators and waves (and horn honks) from passing cars and pedestrians.

Poor families had the progressive liberals demanding an income tax to replace the food tax since the later was so harmful to them. (Where are those people during this debate, btw?) And they were right in that respect. One of the quickest ways to bring relief to families is by eliminating the tax on groceries. I'm hoping this will be a solution even Democrat lawmakers can swallow.