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The INDEPENDENT, September 19,2002
Legislators driven by
fear of losing seats
Most people go into politics because they believe
that government can do a better job, and they really
want to work toward that goal. Seeking public office is
an acknowledgement that government has an impor
tant role to play in our lives and that the legislature is
an important part of the process. That is why the cur
rent state legislature is such an overwhelming failure.
First, get over the idea that government should be
run like a business; it isn’t a business. The role of gov
ernment, at any level, is to provide services deemed
necessary. What is “necessary” will vary from person to
person, but there are a few generally agreed-upon ba
sics. Most people will say public safety, education and
transportation (roads and bridges) are necessary;
therefore it is the role of government to provide these
services and it is the job of elected officials to be sure
there is enough money to provide them. That is done
with taxes, assessments, fees, or whatever you want to
call them.
In other words, when it costs $1.5-2 million to build
one mile of highway, someone has to pay for it. It isn’t
free; borrowing money (bonding) costs us a lot more
because we also pay interest; pretending that this
year’s debt doesn’t matter because it is next year’s ob
ligation is, at best, stupid, at worst, dishonest.
So how should government provide necessary serv
ices with insufficient funds? There are really only two
ways, alone or together: 1. Raise taxes. 2: Cut servic
es.
A few Democrats publicly opted to raise taxes and a
few Republicans publicly opted to cut services. Though
they disagreed on the approach, these few legislators
had the courage to make their positions public. They, at
least, were trying to do their jobs.
The majority in both parties apparently forgot why
they ran for office in the first place — to help govern
ment do a better job of providing necessary services.
So, because they lack either the courage or the con
viction necessary to do their jobs, the majority opted to
borrow against tomorrow’s income for today’s short
term gain. In doing so, they have placed their fiscal ir
responsibility on someone else’s shoulders. In addi
tion, they have not begun to deal with the problem:
The budget gap is growing, not shrinking.
t
Because the majority in the state leg
islature lacks the courage to vote on ei
ther an interim tax increase or severe re
ductions in services, they’ve taken the
coward’s way out: They will refer a tem
porary tax increase to the voters—who
will also have to pay for another special
election.
In an interesting twist on Democracy
in Action, the legislative leadership, par
ticularly in the House, has refused to let
the legislature vote on a number of
strategies that would ease the situation.
One of the most egregious is the refusal
to even consider temporarily disconnect
ing from the Federal tax code in order to
delay the negative effects of accelerated
depreciation approved by Congress and
the Bush administration. (In simple
terms, being “connected” to the federal
code means the state automatically
gives the same tax breaks as the feder
al government so, if the U.S. increases
the deduction for depreciation of busi
ness equipment, so does Oregon.)
As uncomfortable as tax increases
may make legislators feel, the results of
major cuts in state services would be
much more than uncomfortable. Is there
waste in state government? Undoubted
ly, but “cutting out the fat” is far more
complicated than it may seem. Try some
of these questions on for size:
Should in-home services for frail eld
erly or disabled citizens be eliminated
when it results in their being placed in a
care center that costs more per person?
Should “welfare” be reduced when
Oregon already has the nation’s highest
unemployment and the highest percent
age of people who lack food?
Should group homes for developmen-
tally disabled adults be closed when
they will end up on the street, homeless
and without resources?
There is now talk of a sixth special
session in November, after the election,
to deal with the continuing fiscal crisis.
Some Republican legislators are floating
an economic “stimulus” proposal that
would reduce capital gains taxes.
Whoopee! What a fantastic benefit to
people who are out of work, losing their
homes to foreclosure and trying to
stretch their food stamps!
After we finish paying for five (or
more) special sessions, maybe some
recognition would be appropriate...in the
form of a return to private life for select
ed legislators.