Posted on 11/02/2005 9:35:51 AM PST by truth49
OLYMPIA—Yesterday, Colorado residents voted to “temporarily” suspend the state’s tax and spending limit. Passage of Referendum C allows the state to spend an additional $3.7 billion over the next five years that otherwise would have been refunded to taxpayers. A companion measure (Referendum D) to allow the state to borrow $2.1 billion for, in part, road projects, appears to have failed.
“Unfortunately Colorado voters fell prey to their politicians’ best Chicken Little impersonation. The sky is not falling in Colorado, nor is it in Washington,” said Jason Mercier, senior budget analyst for the Evergreen Freedom Foundation (EFF). “The key to both states’ budget health is the ability of elected officials to effectively prioritize spending within available revenue, not for families to be constantly at risk of having their limited resources raided at will.”
In May of last year, EFF offered to work with Colorado Governor Bill Owens to help him implement priorities of government budgeting to assist with Colorado’s budget difficulties. The offer was rejected.
"Had Governor Owens been open to reforming Colorado’s budget system, Referendum C would never have seen the light of day,” said Mercier. “A prioritized, performance-based budget is a natural fit with a meaningful tax and spending limit.”
Colorado and Washington have shared similar experiences over the past decade with their tax and spending limits. Both faced threats as a result of subsequent education initiatives mandating unsustainable spending increases. Colorado’s education spending Amendment 23 was the real budget culprit in that state, not its tax and spending limit.
Likewise, Washington’s spending limit was effectively gutted this past legislative session by Democrats’ decision to raise taxes to fund initiatives 728 (class size reduction) and 732 (teacher pay), which, when originally approved, promised no tax increases would be necessary to fund them.
“Coloradans may be willing to give their politicians a blank check, but Washingtonians expect more fiscal restraint from their government,” said Mercier. “Now that Colorado no longer wishes to be the national standard bearer, Washington can claim the mantle by complimenting our priorities of government budget reform with a new and improved tax and spending limit.”
When I was traveling in Colorado back in July, it seemed like every other radio commercial was telling people to vote for or against propositions C&D.
Will help cover illegal alien education and health costs.
("Denny Crane: Gun Control? For Communists. She's a liberal. Can't hunt.")
Agreed. I'm so angry this morning over this. After listening to Pete Boyles this morning, I'm darn near convinced this was a dirty election.
"Heck, let's all quit working, let the federal Treasury print out enough money to keep us all alive and don't worry about economics. We all die anyway."
Good point! I think I'll go downstairs and have a tasty glass of Koolaid. Might as well.
I can hardly wait to see what they spend the money on. The campaign was all about roads and schools and fire and police. Any bets that funding for the "arts", welfare for illegals, government worker pay hikes and expanded government payrolls (you can't have too many government workers) are in our future?
We could go to Denver and just get stoned...
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