February 3, 2010
Times Writers Group: Pick a governor, not an extremist
Tuesday's caucuses were the first step in bringing real leadership back to the governor's office in St. Paul. Regardless of who wins either party's endorsement, there's hope that the eventual victor will not have drunk Tim Pawlenty's particular brand of anti-tax Kool-Aid along the way.
If that's the case, Minnesota may yet recover some of the ground lost to the governor's refusal to even consider raising taxes as part of the response to budget crises in recent years.
Monday's news brought a stark example of the end result of this sort of unwavering anti-tax ideology in the case of Colorado Springs. In that city of almost 400,000 people, thousands of street lights will soon be shut off, police officers and firefighters will be sent packing, and citizens will be asked to BYOM (bring-your-own-mower) to city parks. The city's police helicopters are for sale on the Internet. Other "non-essential" city services will cease later this spring, including things like evening and weekend bus service.
How did "The Springs," home to the U.S. Air Force Academy and the second largest city in Colorado, get to this point? Has the "Evangelical Vatican," known for its high concentration of conservation Christian organizations, somehow fallen from divine favor? Did the Department of Defense suddenly decide to shutter Fort Carson, NORAD, and Peterson Air Force Base? Did the US Olympic Training Center move to Mexico in search of warmer winters?
Sadly, the people of Colorado Springs did this to themselves via a so-called "taxpayers bill of rights" or TABOR law that placed strict limits on taxes and left local government unable to respond to the recession by doing anything other than slashing services.
The Colorado Springs TABOR law is particularly shortsighted because it restricts public spending to the level of the previous year's budget, plus a small allowance for population growth and inflation. That may be sufficient in good times, but when times are tough — say in a recession — budgets constrict as tax revenues fall. The worst comes afterward, of course, when the law prevents tax increases to restore budgets to their prerecession levels without a vote.
In a notoriously anti-tax community like Colorado Springs the net result is decaying infrastructure, declining public services and ultimately failed government. It's obviously a terrible way to manage the community's future, but residents brought this upon themselves, in part by buying what that anti-tax peddlers were selling ("we'll run the city like a business!") without much thought to the consequences.
By contrast, voters in Oregon endorsed two ballot measures last month that raised taxes on individuals earning more than $150,000, boosted corporate tax rates and increased the minimum tax on business for the first time since 1931. While there's a certain populist appeal to a tax increase that only hits 3 percent of the population, everyone will bear the weight of the increased business and corporate taxes as they are passed on to consumers.
Certainly some would question the wisdom of pushing a $750 million tax increase during a recession, but the voters of Oregon were faced with what they considered unacceptable cuts to public safety, education, and health and human services. It didn't even come down to street lights for them.
We in Minnesota are lucky that anti-tax zealots haven't yet gained much power beyond the governor's office. The damage has been constrained as a result.
Sure, the Minnesota Miracle is well behind us. Yes, our roads are decaying. Social services have been cut. Education is in decline. Oversight and regulation are hampered by lack of resources. We know. But at least the street lights are still on, right?
As the long list of gubernatorial candidates is winnowed to a final few, Minnesotans would do well to keep Colorado Springs and Oregon in mind. We need a governor who will consider every option rather than basing critical decisions on the dictates of a narrow ideology.
A mix of tax increases and spending cuts will be necessary to balance future budgets and maintain the quality of life that makes living here worthwhile, so let's make that the first issue to put before the candidates between now and November.
May the least narrow-minded win.
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Dr.DRL
