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2/20/2009
The STRUGGLE Wisconsin should be undertaking
After employee furloughs, months and months of juggling cash flow (big, big bucks), then pizzas, sleeping bags and a 46-hour floor session, California finally yesterday settled on a budget meant to solve a $41 billion deficit - a deficit larger than the total budget of 39 other states. Wow.
Is it just too obvious to state that this is the struggle Wisconsin need be undertaking? Tough decisions. Strong leadership. Lots of humbling (?) give and take. From today's NY Times:
Republican lawmakers voted for tax increases at the possible expense of losing the next election; Democrats agreed to spending cuts unheard of in other downturns; and most everyone in Sacramento averted even greater compromises by looking to the federal stimulus money to bail them out.
…. “California is an example of what you will see” across the country, said Susan Urahn, the managing director of the Pew Center on the States and a budget expert. The size of budget deficits in other states will lead to similarly hard-fought debates on how to close the gaps, Ms. Urahn said. Now, there's another side to the story - Rich Lowry teeing off on California today.
California has roughly doubled its budget during the past ten years — like the recently passed stimulus bill, except spread out over a decade. Over five years, Gray Davis boosted spending from $75 billion to more than $100 billion, and his “fiscally conservative” vanquisher got it north of $140 billion.
The politicians aren’t entirely to blame, although at every sign of the unsustainability of the state’s fiscal practices their reaction has been to resort to more gimmicks and borrowing. California’s voters have recourse to an initiative process they have used to make responsible budgeting as hard as possible. They passed a proposition in the late 1980s that basically locked up half of state spending for the schools, no matter what. Even in November, with fiscal disaster looming, they passed another $10 billion in bonds for high-speed rail, apparently on the theory that a state can never have enough debt.
The new budget deal will cut about $15 billion in spending and raise roughly the same in taxes, including the car tax over which Schwarzenegger pounded Davis in 2003. The deal has its worthy provisions, but fundamentally it is more of the same. California will remain overtaxed, overregulated, and overburdened by a public sector that is the state’s sole boom industry. Ok, so back to the Times article, on the logistics.
Democrats, who control both houses of the Legislature, reluctantly agreed to a series of concessions to win the support of a single Republican senator, whose vote was necessary to reach the two-thirds majority required under state law for budget bills. That’s the kicker. A two-thirds majority required to pass a budget. Imagine that. Ain’t got no such thing here. Just Democrat majorities everywhere. But do we also, just maybe, have a population ready to throw out the legislature that can’t do an honest job of balancing a budget? Absent that 2/3 majority requirement, courageous lawmakers and citizen rabble rousers absolutely must mount a grassroots campaign for a responsible Wisconsin budget - something unknown around here for the last 20 years.
Jo Egelhoff, FoxPolitics,net
COMMENTS
Jo, I am glad to finally see someone reporting the fact that both parties are running our state into the ground. Republican and democrat alike. Doyle's recent crying episode at the federal level was nothing short of pathetic. If I could hold a sign up in front of the capitol building it would ask two questions. Where do you think the money comes from that you receive at the state level? When you go and beg for money at the federal level where do you think that money comes from? He wouldn't get it. I absolutely think he does not get it at all. Raiding the highway fund a few years ago and now begging for funds to fix our old highway system gives you a real feeling of what kind of a person he really is. Our infrastructure needed help a few years ago as well.
Mike (Fri Feb 20 08:07:26 2009)
No doubt we should have the discussion and take the action necessary to live within our means. The democrats won't have that discussion though as it would cramp their style.
The bigger problem, however, is that nobody else is poised to put the discussion in play. Not because we have such a lop-sided democratic majority, but because Republicans ... even when they HAVE a substantial number of members in the Senate or Assembly ... don't practice the fiscal conservatism that they espouse while running for office.
It is time for those concerned with fiscal responsibility to find the party which will DO as they SAY and elect representation from that party. Rino's are no different from Dems, so as Jo says - this must be grass-roots. We need to make noise now ON OUR OWN and not take the 'easy way out' by relying on an unreliable party.
Jeff Riedl (Fri Feb 20 08:30:51 2009)
Jo, our problem is not Democrat or Republican, it's the fat cats that didn't run for re-election yet still control the state legislature. Remember a few years back when they were trying to cut the budget, yet the road builders ended up with a $70M increase over the prior year?
There are many things that we must do to downsize government, like getting rid of unnecessary departments and freezing hiring. But even more so we need to eliminate the subsidies and no-bid privatized contracts. But none of that is going to occur when private cash is funding our public elections.
Jack Lohman (Fri Feb 20 08:45:47 2009)
When and if downsizing occurs, it will only happen under new rules. The phrase I have heard to describe this is "managed contraction." This brings into the idea of sustainability a steady state rather than so-called "growth" rubric. It means that the idea of growth which is really bloat is replaced with a more compact view of-- everything.
This has been framed in a variety of ways and has been discussed at length. Presentations locally have been given to suggest a process.
It comes down to three things I've mentioned before (and they are not original):
Competitive Bidding
Least cost planning
Full cost accounting
From my own experience I have not seen activity on either side of the political fence which takes these notions seriously.
Lon Ponschock (Fri Feb 20 10:28:26 2009)
The other factor in California's, and other state's, budget crisis is the fact that they have let environmentalists keep them from accessing their vast natural resources, oil and natural gas. If they would allow the companies that currently hold leases to get the oil to market, the State of California would have $50M in revenue in 6 months. We must recognize that oil and natural gas is necessary to fuel the U.S. economy.
Phyllis Klee (Fri Feb 20 12:39:57 2009)
I recently met w-my state senator, Joe Leibham, who BTW, is NOT TAKING A PAY INCREASE because he believes it's wrong, when our budget is so out of control.
ONE HUGE PROBLEM is that UNelected department heads (like DOT, DNR, etc. come up with what they want from the govt of WI, and the dept heads get in excess of $100,000/yr, whereas ELECTED members of the govt get 40-50,000/yr.
And these dept heads too often get what they want. I, for one, am sick of UNELECTED OFFICIALS living on my tax dollars.
emily matthews (Fri Feb 20 21:27:07 2009)
I recently met w-my state senator, Joe Leibham, who BTW, is NOT TAKING A PAY INCREASE because he believes it's wrong, when our budget is so out of control.
Good for him. But I think the part time legislators ought to get part time pay. In any event, many of them work too hard wrecking our liberties, properties and prosperity. Less time on the job= less harm.
ONE HUGE PROBLEM is that UNelected department heads (like DOT, DNR, etc.)And these dept heads too often get what they want. I, for one, am sick of UNELECTED OFFICIALS living on my tax dollars.
An even GREATER problem is that these unelected bureaucrats make law. They propose "rules," and if the legislature does not object, these have the force of law without the legislature ever voting on them!!! Talk about a prescription for tyranny!!!
Another prescription for better government: When in doubt, throw them out. Re Elect No One!! (RENO CAMPAIGN)
Too many laws, too many freeloaders, too many taxes are killing us, literally.
Emily (Fri Feb 20 23:38:37 2009)
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