Since he announced in candidacy in March, Brown has promised repeatedly that he would not raise taxes without a vote of the people – a view that has not come without controversy, even from members of his own party.

But he has also decried a number of tax breaks proposed by Meg Whitman, arguing that they are infeasible given the state’s current economic condition. Brown has said repeatedly that he would not cut the state’s capital gains tax, which taxes assets like stock holdings, calling it a break for the rich.

Though he has frequently spoken out against the targeted tax breaks proposed by Whitman, Brown said in a July interview with CNBC’s Lawrence Kudlow that lowering marginal tax rates across the board could be “a very fine plan” but acknowledged a need to mind the state’s $19 billion budget deficit.

He has also voiced support for film industry tax breaks and tax credits for companies that hire new workers. And he has talked about diversifying the state's tax base to reduce its dependence on income taxes.

In a June interview with CNBC’s Jane Wellls Brown hinted at support for taxes on carbon and pollution as a means of creating incentives: “The key to taxes is what you what less of, you tax. What you want more of, you reduce taxes. And we want more jobs. We want more investment. We want less burning of carbon, we want less pollution, less toxins. And that sends the message of how we restructure the code.”

The centerpiece of Meg Whitman’s tax plan are a series of targeted cuts to various tax programs: the capital gains tax, which applies largely to stock holdings; sales taxes on manufacturing equipment; and an $800 fee on starting limited liability corporations, which her campaign refers to as a “startup tax.”

Her rationale has followed the convention that cutting taxes will spur growth by reducing the cost of doing business. Her budget plan calls for that additional growth to offset upwards of $5 billion of the state’s budget deficit and assumes tax cuts will help cause companies to hire 2 million workers by 2014.

Ideologically, Whitman supports the tax cuts enacted under President Bush in 2001 and 2003. Much of the rhetoric surrounding the cuts focuses on top income earners, but they’re not the only ones on the hook. This article explains how you would be affected, so you can get a better sense of her position.

Whitman has signed a pledge not to raise taxes but waffled slightly in June, when asked whether even an extreme natural disaster would be reason to levy new taxes for recovery efforts. She was caught off guard by the question and said she would not want to rule out taxes in such a situation, causing a minor stir.

In addition to cuts, Whitman has also proposed a series of tax credits: $10,000 for new homebuyers; credits to encourage water conservation; an expansion of the credit businesses receive on research and development activities; and a credit for companies that hire workers into green tech positions.

She philosophically supports cuts to statewide income and sales tax rates but said that would not happen until the economy recovers.