MA:  Because the red herring argument about "non-resident" employees is nothing but obfuscation.  You want to tax those few non-resident employees who earn enough to pay an income tax, most don't as they are seasonal and do not earn enough to pay an income tax, so you can gouge the 200,000 Alaskan wage earners who do earn enough to pay an income tax, all to preserve the annual welfare check (PFD) that no one earns.  Geez.....talk about sticking it to Alaskans.