Democratic contenders clash over taxes

The sleepy governor's race stirred to life yesterday, with Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly charging that voters ``cannot trust" Democratic rival Deval L. Patrick on taxes, and Patrick firing back that Reilly has switched positions on the issue.

Reilly's campaign said Patrick supported proposals that would raise excise and payroll taxes last year, but has since denounced new taxes.

``Voters need to know they will have a strong, unwavering voice to stand up and hold the line on taxes," Reilly communications director David Guarino said in a statement. ``Deval Patrick should stand up and tell the truth -- that he has already proposed raising new taxes that would have crippled businesses and further burdened residents."

Patrick's campaign countered, pointing out that Reilly has switched positions on the rollback of the state income tax rate. Reilly opposed the rollback until last year, when he called on the state to lower the rate to 5 percent from its current 5.3 percent.

``If he handles our taxes like he has the Big Dig's cost overruns, then voters have many reasons to worry," Richard Chacón , communications director for the Patrick campaign, said in a statement.

A Globe poll published Sunday found that the three-way primary race is in a virtual tie as the Sept. 19 primary approaches. The poll also found that a majority of likely primary voters surveyed said they supported an income tax rollback.

In 2000, voters approved a gradual lowering of the income tax rate from 5.85 percent to 5 percent. But in the depths of the state's fiscal crisis in 2002, the Legislature froze the rate at 5.3 percent.

DEBATE OVER TAXES For more on the candidates' positions on taxes, go to Political Intelligence at boston.com/politics.

Patrick opposes an income tax rate rollback, saying a cut would push up property taxes. Reilly supports an immediate rollback. Democrat Christopher F. Gabrieli supports a gradual rollback. Gabrieli held an education event yesterday, and was drawn into the back and forth after the Globe asked him for a response to the charges between Reilly and Patrick.

``Tom Reilly and Deval Patrick are both wrong on taxes," Dan Cence , a spokesman for Gabrieli's campaign, said in an e-mailed statement. ``Tom's promising an immediate tax cut that will never happen, and Deval Patrick opposes any income tax cut. Chris Gabrieli has released a common-sense plan to cut taxes to 5 percent."

Yesterday, Reilly's campaign cited three instances last year when Patrick said he would raise taxes. They pointed to Patrick's support of a plan to establish universal health coverage in Massachusetts by hiking cigarette taxes 50 cents a pack and by creating a new payroll tax for employers that do not offer worker health plans. They also said Patrick proposed giving cities and towns authority to raise additional revenue with a ``reasonable local meals tax" on patrons.

Reilly's campaign launched the attack after a Boston Herald columnist quoted Patrick as saying, ``There is no way that the public would be interested in tax increases. And no reason I can think of for asking for them."

Yesterday, Patrick's campaign maintained that he has been ``consistent and honest" about his stance on taxes and said Reilly's ``latest position . . . would mean even higher property taxes for Massachusetts homeowners."

Until late last year, Reilly repeatedly said the state could not afford the estimated $600 million in revenue it would lose annually if the rate were rolled back to 5 percent.

But by the end of 2005, Reilly said that the Legislature should roll back the state income tax rate because the state's revenues had grown.

For more on the candidates' positions on taxes, go to Political Intelligence at boston.com/politics.

Russell Nichols can be reached at rnichols@globe.com.