Weinholtz embraced the proposal put forward by Education First Utah, a lobbying group that promotes investment in education and is led by prominent local business leaders, of increasing the state's income tax by seven-eighths of a percentage point. The potential change has been estimated to bring about $518 million in additional funding to Utah schools every year.
"If we're going to say we're serious about education, we need a slight tax increase to bring proper funding in," Weinholtz said during a candidate forum hosted by the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the University of Utah. "Education is important enough to me and other Utahns that I know this is a solution they'll support."
Education First touts a poll that says 70 percent of Utahns would support a 1 percent increase in income taxes to support education.
Weinholtz has also said he supports adjusting Utah's flat tax, adopted in 2006 under Republican Gov. Jon Huntsman, to return it to a more graduated model in which people with high incomes would pay more. Such a move would likewise generate more education dollars for the state.
States that have tried to raise taxes have seen it blow up the economy, Herbert said, and he doesn't want to do that in Utah.
"I just know that from history, as we see that kind of Eastern, liberal mentality take place, we saw what happened in Illinois; when they did the same thing, they lost 100,000 jobs in six months," the governor said. "You don't want to, in fact, kill the goose that lays the golden egg."
Illinois' job picture isn't exactly as Herbert portrayed.
