As state and local governments near the beginning of a new budget year, the middle class will get an extra jolt of recession economics. Recessions have the effect of shifting more of the tax burden to middle-income families and this is the worst recession since the Depression.

A host of new taxes will go into effect statewide on July 1, the start of the 2010 fiscal year.

Taking effect with approval of the budget by Gov. Deval Patrick are a 25 percent increase in the sales tax, a 25 percent increase in the meals tax, a 21 percent increase in the hotel room tax, and - perhaps to discourage you from drowning your sorrows - a brand new sales tax on beer, wine and liquor. For good measure there may also be a one-of-a-kind tax on satellite TV service.

Despite this new revenue for the state, cities and towns will be getting less state aid.

Local taxes generally won't be going up more than usual, but as with the state, local tax revenue is not keeping pace with the demand for services in the recession. This will create irresistible pressure for Proposition 21/2 tax overrides at some point. As Attleboro officials have learned, there are also some old taxes which for a time aren't going to be paid by some of the better-off taxpayers, namely business owners. That's because when business people make less money they naturally pay less taxes. How many business people are making more money these days?

The long-running shift of the property tax burden from commercial to residential real estate in Attleboro has been accelerated by the decline in the value of business properties as they age and as companies suffer downturns or close altogether. That shifts more of the local tax burden to homeowners.

Housing construction was booming not long ago. Now it's at a standstill. New construction generates new property taxes which in tax lingo is called "new growth" revenue. If there's less building there's less new property tax revenue. Assessor Stanley Nacewicz had projected $500,000 in "new growth" revenue in the coming fiscal year, but he recently said that's unrealistic.

The city will take yet another hit from declining excise tax revenue, the tax paid on cars and trucks. Struggling families and well-to-do families both are cutting down on the number of cars they have and putting off buying new cars. The tax goes down as the cars age or are junked.

One important tax that doesn't get talked about much is the capital gains tax. That's the tax on investment profits. Investments didn't do too well in 2008, you might say. Most capital gains taxes are paid to the federal government, but the state also collects them, and that revenue is down 75 percent or a whopping $1.6 billion, accounting for most of the state's budget shortfall.

There's not much the state can do about that, hence, the nickel-and-diming via the tax increases that were voted by the Legislature and approved by the governor. But those nickels and dimes add up. The 1.25 cents added to the nickel-on-the-dollar sales tax will bring in $900 million, or at least the state hopes it will.

The sales tax hits the poor and middle class disproportionately hard. Now that effect will be magnified by the tax increases soon to take effect. Likewise the property tax and the excise tax and so on.

When times are tough the taxman comes calling - and it's the middle class that has to answer the door.

NED BRISTOL is a member of The Sun Chronicle Editorial Board and a former editor of the newspaper.