Tuesday, December 13, 2005
An anti-TABOR primer and talking points
In Wisconsin, a misguided (or malevolent) group of legislative leaders is pushing a TABOR amendment to the state’s constitution. They are supported by various national organizations such as Americans for Prosperity and Americans for Tax Reform.
They like to say we're over-taxed here, but according to the Institute for Wisconsin’s Future, individual state taxes have remained consistent for the past 25 years. If we wanted to either reduce individual tax burden or do more for our citizens, we could ask our "corporate citizens" to carry their fair shar: Wisconsin is ranked 50th among all states -- yes, dead last -- in business taxes.
The facts show that TABOR in Wisconsin would do irreparable damage to the state’s education system and in particular harm homeowners and working families. More importantly, the patients and providers of home health care (and the families and communities of both) will suffer greatly under TABOR.
Here are some talking points to help you fight back:
What is the Taxpayer Bill of Rights?
The Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) is a set of constitutional provisions that limit revenue growth for state and local governments (counties, cities, towns, school districts and special districts) to the rate of inflation plus population growth and requires that any tax increase be approved by the voters of the affected government.
Who is pushing TABOR?
The primary proponent of TABOR is an individual named Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform. Norquist has recently gained national interest with his close ties to Jack Abramoff, who is under criminal investigation for his lobbying activities, part of which evolve out of his collection of over $82 million in fees from Native American tribes and their casinos over four years. The architect of TABOR is a Coloradan by the name of Doug Bruce. The pro-TABOR movement is coordinated and heavily funded by the Washington, D.C.-based Americans for Prosperity. These well financed anti-tax national organizations and individuals fund and promote false promises of economic prosperity and tax relief to local organizations and legislators.
TABOR forces states to adhere to a strict, unrealistic and irresponsible formula
Using overall population growth, as TABOR proponents do, fails to account for variations in growth in different sectors of the population that require specific spending programs, like the elderly, school age children, and incarcerated individuals.
TABOR proponents use the Consumer Price Index as the inflation measure to capture the cost structure facing governments. However, the Consumer Price Index measures consumer purchases of items such as cars, food and housing. Governments, on the other hand, purchase “goods” such as health care, emergency services, roads, schools and so on. Thus consumer purchases do not accurately reflect the cost of public services, particularly when considering the escalating costs of items such as health care, which inevitably will lead to setting budget levels lower than the actual need.
They like to say we're over-taxed here, but according to the Institute for Wisconsin’s Future, individual state taxes have remained consistent for the past 25 years. If we wanted to either reduce individual tax burden or do more for our citizens, we could ask our "corporate citizens" to carry their fair shar: Wisconsin is ranked 50th among all states -- yes, dead last -- in business taxes.
The facts show that TABOR in Wisconsin would do irreparable damage to the state’s education system and in particular harm homeowners and working families. More importantly, the patients and providers of home health care (and the families and communities of both) will suffer greatly under TABOR.
Here are some talking points to help you fight back:
What is the Taxpayer Bill of Rights?
The Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) is a set of constitutional provisions that limit revenue growth for state and local governments (counties, cities, towns, school districts and special districts) to the rate of inflation plus population growth and requires that any tax increase be approved by the voters of the affected government.
Who is pushing TABOR?
The primary proponent of TABOR is an individual named Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform. Norquist has recently gained national interest with his close ties to Jack Abramoff, who is under criminal investigation for his lobbying activities, part of which evolve out of his collection of over $82 million in fees from Native American tribes and their casinos over four years. The architect of TABOR is a Coloradan by the name of Doug Bruce. The pro-TABOR movement is coordinated and heavily funded by the Washington, D.C.-based Americans for Prosperity. These well financed anti-tax national organizations and individuals fund and promote false promises of economic prosperity and tax relief to local organizations and legislators.
TABOR forces states to adhere to a strict, unrealistic and irresponsible formula
Using overall population growth, as TABOR proponents do, fails to account for variations in growth in different sectors of the population that require specific spending programs, like the elderly, school age children, and incarcerated individuals.
TABOR proponents use the Consumer Price Index as the inflation measure to capture the cost structure facing governments. However, the Consumer Price Index measures consumer purchases of items such as cars, food and housing. Governments, on the other hand, purchase “goods” such as health care, emergency services, roads, schools and so on. Thus consumer purchases do not accurately reflect the cost of public services, particularly when considering the escalating costs of items such as health care, which inevitably will lead to setting budget levels lower than the actual need.
TABOR hurts taxpayers and fosters corruption
- Regardless of occasional rebates, families end up paying the same or more for fewer quality services.
- Under TABOR, power is shifted from the average citizen (who can influence the decision making process by voting for or against a candidate) to big money interest groups that can push forward their agenda.
- TABOR pits first responders against educators against health care professionals and so on to fight for funding for their programs.
- TABOR encourages politicians to fund their pork barrel projects instead of the services that matter most to Wisconsin.
- TABOR stifles government’s ability to provide for citizens.
- Under TABOR a state’s legislature would be constitutionally prohibited from spending above the TABOR limits, even if revenues exist to fund such spending.
- TABOR threatens a state’s ability to respond to emergencies. If a Hurricane Katrina-like event occurred, a TABOR would make it impossible for a legislature to make sufficient emergency funds available immediately.
- TABOR fails to account for the fact that some investments that are costly in the short term will have returns for the state in the long run.
- TABOR creates disincentives for efficiency by mandating return of surplus funds; thus, agencies will spend everything they receive if they have no opportunity to channel funds to areas of unmet needs.
- Once in a state’s constitution, TABOR is difficult to remove.
- Placing a restrictive tax and expenditure limitation such as TABOR in a state constitution makes changing or removing such a restriction from state law extremely difficult. It took Colorado more than a decade be able to suspend TABOR.
In 1992, Colorado became the only state to experiment with a TABOR.
On November 1, 2005, individuals from the business community, faith community, various political parties, advocates and even one time supporters of TABOR all organized to put an end to it in Colorado. Why?
- From 1991 to 2003, the percent of low-income children without health insurance rose from 15 to 27 percent. During that same period of time, the national rate of uninsured children declined.
- In 2001, funding for health care programs in Colorado became so depleted that the state was forced to suspend its requirement that school children be fully vaccinated because the state could not afford to buy the vaccines.
- Per pupil funding for K-12 education has declined more than $400 in relation to the national average.
- Colorado ranks 48th in the nation for the amount of state tax funds devoted to higher education as a proportion of total state personal income.
- Since June 2002, state funding for libraries has been cut more than 79 percent.
- After over a decade of TABOR, Colorado now ranks 44th in K-12 expenditures, 46th in high school completion rate, 36th in average teacher salary, and 41st in highway maintenance.
- Before 2002, the state contributed funds to help farmers with the cost of agricultural product inspection fees. After the state cut support, local farmers now shoulder the entire cost of these public safety inspections. For many agricultural producers these inspection fees have increased an average of 500 percent.
- Over the last four years, Colorado reported a total loss of 68,000 jobs. In that same period of time, the eight other Mountain Region states reported a median job growth rate of 4.5 percent.
