WE Blog

9 Comments

1. XXX
   Posted October 16, 2005 at 12:48 am | Permalink

   If Tabor is such a hot idea, why is Colorado trying to get rid of it? Let Kansans vote on tax increases? That I gotta see. Why not just cut to the chase and outlaw any tax increase? Same result.

2. Galahad
   Posted October 16, 2005 at 8:27 am | Permalink

   Holy mackeral, I gotta start a special interest group funded by big corporations so I can get a personal audience with the Eagle editoral staff . . .

3. JUSTA GUY
   Posted October 16, 2005 at 8:47 am | Permalink

   I think you have to understand the legistlative mindset. Those are not tax dollars the legistlature is wasting, they are state funds. lol We do need some controls on state spending and it seems that our representatives, once elected, have no control. Maybe it is part of the Intelligent Design. lol

4. JWink
   Posted October 16, 2005 at 2:59 pm | Permalink

   TABOR would be a substitute for a state legislature that is failing to do its job.

   Now think. Kansas has 165 legislative members: 40 state senators and 125 state representatives. I estimate they cost Kansas taxpayers some $100,000 per member for salaries, health insurance, retirement, staff, telephones, computers, grandiose offices in the historic Kansas capital building, travel expenses to and from Topeka, subscriptions and … snacks.

   So, I suggest a “Legislative Tabor.” Establish a unicameral or one-house legislature like Nebraska and all contemporary city councils that I know of. Perhaps the single house would be our current 40 state senators.

   According to my country bookkeeping, this would save $12,500,000 per year.

5. KS Meadowlark
   Posted October 16, 2005 at 4:14 pm | Permalink

   Press Release – Monday, October 17, 2005 For immediate release

   Contact: Wayne Flaherty, Kansans Against Bi-State (913)-831-2140

   I saw America work. Last month, I was privileged to travel across Kansas with the Americans For Prosperity as they visited 23 cities to acquaint Kansans with TABOR, the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights. Speaking in parking lots, meeting halls, city parks, and hotel lobbies, TABOR was presented to those for and against placing limits on government spending. AFP leaders, local citizens, and elected state officials explained why we need TABOR. Next, there were questions from the audience and one on one conversations as people discussed TABOR. No shots were fired. No blows were struck. For four days, it was the voice of the people involved in their government.

   TABOR is a state constitutional amendment that allows the state’s revenue and expenditures to grow at a rate not to exceed the sum of inflation and population growth – and requires that surplus revenues be returned to taxpayers through tax cuts or rebates. Under TABOR, state programs can grow – including education. TABOR will not cut any programs. TABOR will require the state to make the same kinds of budget decisions that Kansas families face every day. For every dollar you send to the state of Kansas, 68 cents goes to education. Of the 75 lobbyists in the halls of the capitol during a session, 30 are tax paid education lobbyists. Kansas population is declining as people have to look elsewhere for jobs and lower taxes. You have to live within your means, why shouldn’t your government?

   Kansas Without TABOR:

   Kansas is nearly $4 billion in debt.The Kansas budget is growing 3 times as fast as the average Kansas wageKansas legislators can raise taxes at any time – and often doOnly 14 states have a higher state income tax rate than KansasKansas has the 6th highest number of government employees per 100 residentsFrom December 2001 to December 2004, the Kansas private sector lost 14,700 jobs while, at the same time, the Kansas government gained 9,400 jobs.Kansas is on the brink of losing a congressional seat, leaving us with only 3 congressional seats

   Kansas Under TABOR:

   Legislators are still elected as they have been.Legislators still have the same responsibilities they have always had.The state budget can still grow – but only at a limited rate tied to population and inflation growth.A TABOR budget stabilization fund and an emergency fund will provide protection against unforeseen economic events – something the Colorado TABOR does not have.All levels of government would have to become more fiscally responsible. Legislators wishing to exceed spending limits can still do so – but only if you, the taxpayer, give them permission.

   Colorado Under TABOR:

   By almost any factor you want to measure, Colorado is better off than Kansas. Colorado’s current problems stem from the lack of an emergency fund and a budget stabilization fund, both of which are an integral part of the Kansas TABOR amendment. Before TABOR was passed in Colorado, Kansas and Colorado were very similar in all ways the health of a state is normally measured. Opponents of TABOR claim that Colorado has assets Kansas does not, such as mountains. These assets existed before 1992 when TABOR was enacted and the Colorado economy started to grow. Now, things are different – very different:

   Colorado is 6th in per capita income – Kansas is 30th

   Colorado is 3rd in population growth –Kansas is 36th.

   Colorado is 3rd in personal income growth – Kansas is 41st.

   Colorado is 3rd in productivity growth – Kansas is 32nd

   Since TABOR, Colorado citizens received $3 billion in tax rebates and refunds while Kansans received none.

   For years, the Kansas government has refused to exercise any fiscal restraint. Since they won’t, the citizens will have to do it for them, and the tool best suited for the job is TABOR. A 2/3 majority of the legislature is required to bring TABOR to a vote of the people. Tell your legislator you want to have a say in controlling state taxes.

6. ProudMan
   Posted October 16, 2005 at 8:37 pm | Permalink

   “Why does Kansas need to amend a one-size-fits-all budget formula into its constitution in order to do that?” – Because it won’t get done otherwise.

   Sometimes I cannot believe the questions journalists ask.

7. mrcontroversy
   Posted October 17, 2005 at 11:32 am | Permalink

   Landwehr, et al, have it backward.Before Colorado had TABOR, they had initiative and referendum.If the wing nuts were thinking, they could have conservatives on both sides of the aisle lined up against Sebelius…but they’re not thinking.

8. Zoom
   Posted October 17, 2005 at 3:32 pm | Permalink

   The Republican Party has had control of the social and financial policies of this state for over a decade yet they take no responsibility for the troubles they are so quick to point out. Why not do something completely different and stop sending the same neo-cons back to the legislature? Stop doing the wrong thing harder.

9. XXX
   Posted October 17, 2005 at 7:26 pm | Permalink

   Zoom, there’s a word for people who keep doing the same thing expecting different results. But this is Kansas.