DeLeo 'open-minded' on sales tax

"I'm open-minded towards it, as I am with the others," DeLeo told reporters yesterday, after being asked how he felt about increasing the sales tax.

DeLeo said the only tax increase he has ruled out is a boost in the state income tax, an idea he called "dead on arrival." On all other taxes, he said, "I'm willing to talk."

The House is scheduled to begin debating its budget Monday, a spending plan that is loaded with deep cuts that have drawn protests from social-service advocates, as well as unions. Business groups and state residents have said a recession is the wrong time to raise taxes.

The tax increase that appears to have the most backing is to increase the sales tax from 5 percent to 6 percent, which would raise about $750 million, according to some estimates.

So far, DeLeo and others in his leadership team have avoided taking a strong position. The new speaker, who replaced former speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi in January, appears reluctant to use the full leverage of his office to stake out a position and push it through the House. Next week will provide some of his first big tests.

"There has not been any decisions made," DeLeo said. "But I am meeting constantly . . . to try to formulate some ideas of where the membership lies. This is going to be a very, very interesting debate."

DeLeo also said yesterday that dedicating tax increases to fix the state's transportation problems could be on the table next week during the budget debate, but he would not elaborate. He also refused to say if he is ready to embrace Governor Deval Patrick's call for an increase in the tax on gasoline. Patrick has said the tax should be raised by 19 cents a gallon, but lawmakers have been cool to the proposal.

"Right now there's the income tax, the sales tax, hotel-motel, meals, and everything else in between," DeLeo said after a speech to business and community leaders at the annual meeting of the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation. "You could take any one of those and say a certain portion [of the revenues] would be dedicated to transportation needs."

The speaker's refusal to rule out higher taxes was another indication that a tax vote is on the horizon. Lawmakers have filed a slew of proposed amendments to the House budget that would increase taxes. Liberal lawmakers and social-service advocates are pushing for tax increases, saying that the budget cuts unveiled by the House Ways and Means Committee are intolerably deep.

Another sign tax increases are on the Legislature's agenda is a discussion of unpaid furloughs for lawmakers, which would demonstrate that lawmakers are willing to share residents' economic pain.

DeLeo said yesterday that he had asked House personnel to examine putting lawmakers on three to five days of furloughs. It is unclear whether lawmakers would be forced to take the days off, or if they would have to volunteer. The amount of savings that would be produced by furloughs was not available.

"We're working on that now," DeLeo said. "I've already worked with House personnel today, trying to get a feel for savings and what we can do, what's feasible."

The Senate has also been looking at taking furloughs.

"It's a cost-saving option that's on the table," said Senator Steven Panagiotakos, a Lowell Democrat and chairman of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. "It was just broached but hasn't gotten into detail yet."

Senate President Therese Murray declined to comment.

Lawmakers make a base salary of $61,440. Losing a week's salary would cost each lawmakers about $1,200, and if all 200-members of the Legislature took the hit, it would add up to nearly $240,000. Some lawmakers have rejected a 5.5 percent pay hike this year, although most decided to take the raise.

Patrick announced last week that he would furlough 5,000 executive branch employees for up to five days in response to the state's rapidly declining revenues. Patrick and many in his top staff said they would still come to the office and work for free, rather than take vacation days.

House budget writers released a $27.4 billion budget last week that included drastic cuts across state government, which has prompted public health, social services, and other advocates to call for new taxes to restore some of the funding.

Rank-and-file lawmakers have filed 978 budget amendments, with most of them going toward funding pet projects.

The requests include $20,000 to update the sound system at a school auditorium in Hopedale and $250,000 for the eradication of invasive aquatic species in Lake Cochituate State Park. There is $90,121 to have 14 officers from the State Police Bomb Squad trained by Israeli security services, and $50,000 so that Leicester can study whether it needs a new fire facility.

Other proposals include requiring the state to distribute free transponders, and establishing toll booths on Interstates 93 and 95 at the New Hampshire border.

But the most vigorous debate is expected to be around a wide array of tax-raising amendments, including raising the meals tax from 5 percent to 8 percent, raising the gas tax by 25 cents-per-gallon, and increasing the state's income tax from 5.3 percent to 6.3 percent.

Matt Viser can be reached at maviser@globe.com.