Most people look to Washington DC and the words of Mr. Alan Greenspan as a barometer to measure the fate of the economy. While Mr. Greenspan does set the tone, they are overlooking the fact that many states and cities have already taken actions that could very well cripple the early stages of a recovery, stalling any hope of an anticipated stronger recovery in 2004 or 2005.

Many states, towns and cites have been caught off guard by sharp declining tax revenue and large budget deficits. Their solution - new fees, regulations and taxes. The heavy burden of paying down the deficit will fall squarely on the weakening shoulders of the consumer and corporations all across America.

The State of California, for example, is set to triple the cost of vehicle registration, among many fee/tax increases (This may change based upon the impact of the impending recall election) This is just one of many new taxes/fees proposed in California. The problem with these taxes is that the potential for negative impact against future revenue is rarely measured. One politician stated that this tax alone
would cost California drivers more than $4 billion dollars, about $130 per year for the average driver. These figures do not take into account the impact this will have on the thousands of businesses that own company vehicles or the potentially negative impact on new car sales.