<$BlogRSDUrl$>

My personal musings about anything that gets on my radar screen--heavily dominated by politics.

2005-01-14

State of the State

The Governor addressed the joint session of the Colorado legislature today to deliver the annual State of the State (you can read the text here).

I was impressed with the Governor's speech today. The reports that have been making it into the MSM of late have tried to paint the Governor as open to compromise, especially on TABOR. Even tonight the headline of the Rocky Mountain News story is "Compromise On Owens' Agenda." But it was clear from the Governor's language today that there are many issues on which he is unwilling to compromise.

To begin with, TABOR.

We can overcome this challenge this year with the plan I'm proposing — a plan that addresses our real needs.

First we need to take the commonsense step of using the specific provisions of TABOR to address Colorado's investment needs. It respects the fact that every dollar in the budget belongs to hard-working Coloradans. So let's ask the taxpayers' permission to keep some of the available TABOR surplus.

Local governments have used this provision in TABOR. And voters have responded. The key is to let taxpayers know specifically what the funds will be used for.

My plan would guarantee an investment of at least $100 million per year to bond for transportation programs, creating a $1.7 billion bond issue. It will help accelerate a number of badly needed projects, and enable us to start on new projects across the state.

These funds would also help increase Colorado's investment in higher education and public safety, programs that are at risk if we do not act.

This plan also proposes tax relief for working families. It makes little sense to have the state collect money from Coloradans to only then turn around and give it back. So we should take a commonsense step to prevent the government from collecting dollars it can't use. Let's roll the personal income tax rate back to 4.5 percent.

And let me be clear about what this plan does not do. It does not eliminate spending caps. It does not eliminate the right to vote on tax increases. It does not erase accountability to our taxpayers.

It does not gut TABOR. It preserves TABOR as a protection for Colorado taxpayers.

That's my plan.

To sum up, he is proposing triggering a provision that is already within TABOR to ask the taxpayers to forego a part of their refund so that the state has a little extra money to work with. At the same time, it securitizes some of that money (he also has an idea to securitize--that is, lock up the monies in guaranteed bonds--money from the tobacco initiative) to provide a little certainty when dealing with the budget for future years. This has several advantages: one, the trigger can be activated on a simple majority vote in the legislature, followed by a simple majority at the ballot box; two, it creates a degree of certainty in the presence of those monies; and three, it does not destroy what TABOR was intended to do.

One little know piece of the budget problem the state faces is that TABOR has yet to play a role. Because of the indexing of TABOR limiting budgetary spending to inflation plus growth, and the fact that for the last four years revenue has not even kept up with inflation plus growth, TABOR has yet to kick in. The problem is this year, when revenues are projected to grow at 6%; TABOR limits the growth of government to roughly 1.5%, and the remainder will have to go back to the taxpayers. In fact, because of those limits, it is projected that the state's budget will not get back to 2000 levels (in real dollars) until sometime next decade. That is a difficult limitation.

Two other notes on the budget plan: the Governor seems to have signed on to Andrew Romanoff's plan to reduce the income tax rate in exchange for this revenue; and at any rate, substantial alterations to TABOR would (if I understand this right) require a two-thirds vote in the legislature. That's a pretty high threshhold to achieve.

Of the rest of the speech, most notable was the section that I refer to as "The Gauntlet:"

I enjoyed working with my friends Dick Lamm and Roy Romer to enact good laws. So I'm optimistic that we will work well together and have a very productive session.

But I'll also tell you that I had some bills vetoed. People of good will disagree sometimes. These vetoes came because the Governor disagreed with my bills. And you will have some bills vetoed. But my pledge is, when we do disagree, we'll do it without being disagreeable.

However, we all must draw lines. I agree with President Reagan who once said, "We will compromise. But we will not compromise our basic principles." I won't, either.

Colorado is a leader in tort reform. We will not retreat.

Colorado is a leader in common sense workers' compensation policy. We will not retreat.

Colorado is a leader in school choice, charter schools and home schooling. We will not retreat.

Colorado is a beacon, a safe haven from Internet taxation. We will not retreat.

So if you ask me to compromise on principle, I will get out the veto pen. And, just as I did with Governors Lamm and Romer, I hope that we will disagree as friends and as Coloradans.

Clearly, even though he does not have control of either house of the legislature (there are those who would argue that he never did have control, even with majorities), he is completely unwilling to give back any of the ground he has won in the last six years.

This was a strong speech, interspersed with tales of heroism and good humor. I think the Governor has drawn a line in the sand and we will all wait to see how close the Democrats are willing to go to it.
Posted by: Michael / 1/14/2005 01:23:00 AM

Weblog Commenting by HaloScan.com

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?