Living in the State of Delusion – Special Election Edition

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

In the ultimate act of political cowardice the Arizona Legislature voted to refer a three year temporary sales tax increase to the ballot in a costly special election to be held on May 18. The Arizona Legislature punted its constitutional responsibilities to you, the voters. This legislature is an epic failure.

There are two structural reasons for this act of political cowardice. First is Prop. 108 enacted by voters in 1992, which requires a two-thirds super-majority vote of both chambers of the legislature to increase taxes (or to eliminate or reduce tax exemptions or credits). Second is the one-third of the legislature, all Republicans, who have signed on to Grover Norquist's "no tax" pledge. The Arizona Legislature is held hostage by this tyranny of a minority of anti-tax zealots abusing Prop. 108.

A courageous legislature would have enacted the temporary sales tax with a two-thirds super-majority vote to take effect as soon as possible. It would have had at least some effect on the current $1.4 billion budget deficit before the end of the FY 2010 fiscal year.

As it stands now, the temporary sales tax increase is purely speculative and subject to the whim of the electorate. It will do nothing to close the current FY 2010 budget deficit before the end of this fiscal year and, if defeated by the voters, will do nothing to close the projected $2.6 billion budget deficit in the FY 2011 budget. (JLBC report mfh-jan-10.pdf). The expense of this special election will be added to the budget deficit.

I expect the temporary sales tax will be defeated. This is the fondest hope of many Republicans in the Arizona Legislature, even some of those who voted to refer the question to voters. Republicans will then proclaim, "see, we told you so, the public is opposed to tax increases." This over-simplification of a complex issue misreads the public and misrepresents the meaning of such a vote.

The Arizona Legislature is asking voters to impose a regressive sales tax that will impact those least able to afford it the most. The projected revenues from this temporary sales tax are estimated at $943 million in fiscal 2011, $968 million in fiscal 2012 and $1.1 billion in fiscal 2013. That works out to $438 per year for an average family, House Democrats have estimated. I believe these estimates are overly optimistic (actual revenue has been below projected revenue for the past 17 months).

If House Republicans get their way on the bogus-named "Jobs Recovery Act" (actually a corporate bailout package), this revenue will be more than offset by the tax cuts to corporations and the wealthy, adding to the structural budget deficit. The Arizona Budget Coalition responds to the GOP corporate bailout plan

The average Arizona taxpayer faces paying more in sales tax, and paying more in local property taxes because of the House Republicans' plan to shift property taxes from corporations to residential homeowners at the county level. The pittance the average Arizona taxpayer would realize from any income tax cut would be more than offset by these other tax increases. And those Arizona taxpayers in need will be forced to endure another $4 billion plus in budget cuts to essential government services (many services mandated by the state constitution) to close the budget deficit this Legislature is making worse with its corporate bailout package. You will be paying more and getting less. The safety net is being cut away for those in need while corporations and the wealthy are being handed a windfall. This is unjust and immoral.

"Although the House voted for the special election, it did not give final approval to four other special session bills that would delay education funding and borrow $750 million against future lottery revenue and the sale and lease-back of state buildings." Arizona Capitol Times » Legislature passes sales tax referral:

• S1002 would defer payment of $350 million to K-12 and $100 million to universities until fiscal year 2011.

• S1003 would require the Arizona Department of Administration to issue $450 million in state Lottery revenue bonds. It also would require the Arizona Department of Administration to sell state buildings for $300 million and then lease them back.

• S1004 would authorize the Arizona Lottery to continue until 2035.
This bill is conditional on the enactment of S1003.

• S1005 would require pro-rated income tax deductions for people who work in the state but live outside of Arizona and to pay Arizona income taxes. Right now the state requires those taxpayers to pro-rate only itemized deductions. This bill would require standardized deductions to be pro-rated as well.

The House is holding these bills hostage to force the Senate to act on its bogus-named "Jobs Recovery Act" corporate bailout package. "Although House Republicans would like swift Senate action on that bill, which would cut business taxes and [shift property taxes to residential property], Senate President Bob Burns has said he won’t hear the bill until all the budget work is done."

Structural budget deficits are projected to continue through 2014. That is two more legislatures, people.

The current GOP insane clown posse is incapable of governance in the public interest. None of these clowns should be permitted to serve in elected office.

By the way, Republicans are already working on their "golden parachute" Plan B in the event the voters decide to throw incumbents out of office this year. Sen. Jack Harper is sponsoring a bill to permit lawmakers to go straight from elected office to lobbyist jobs. Bill seeks to repeal limit on lobbying by ex-legislators:

The Senate Committee on Government Institutions voted 6-1 Thursday to scrap a law that keeps lawmakers from lobbying their former colleagues for a year after they leave office. The plan, if approved by the full Legislature and signed by the governor, would take effect in time to let the current crop of lawmakers who are not running for re-election, or who are defeated, to take lobbying jobs starting in January of next year.

This is so blatantly over-the-top self-serving it is obscene. These clowns should never be permitted anywhere near government ever again. They are guilty of legislative malpractice. They should be held accountable.

Arizona will only begin to address its structural budget deficit problems – the result of 20 years of GOP tax cuts that have reduced the tax base to an unsustainable level – when it does two things:

1. Repeal Prop. 108, the two-thirds super-majority requirement for tax matters; and

2. Scrap Arizona's tax structure entirely and start over with a diversified tax structure that is sustainable.