Apparently its never enough for Government Workers!
Inside Liberty Watch Today - Oct. 10, 2005
People from Kansas are assumed to have good sense. After all America's heartland isn't La-La Land. The weather is harsh and the people are hardy.
"If you want total security, go to prison," was Abilene, Kansas's favorite son Dwight D. Eisenhower's view. "There you're fed, clothed, given medical care and so on. The only thing lacking... is freedom."
But, Kansas ain't what it used to be. Politicians there, like everywhere, want more and more tax money to take care of everyone from cradle to grave. The Kansas state government budget this year is $11.4 billion compared to just $1 billion in 1974. You might be wondering if the population of the Sunflower state has increased ten-fold during those 30 years. Not even close. Just short of 2.3 million people lived Kansas in 1974 (including this writer). Since then, the population has grown, barely, to 2.7 million.
But, while government has been living high on the hog, job and economic growth in Kansas has been punk.
No wonder Kansas congresswoman Rep. Brenda Landwehr, R-Wichita, has introduced a Colorado-like Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR). The bill is co-authored by University of Colorado economics professor Barry Poulson, and is slated for consideration in the 2006 Kansas Legislature.
Colorado's TABOR serves to limit increases to that state's government budget to; Consumer Price Index (CPI) increases plus population growth. Should the state collect more than that they must return it to taxpayers. Should the state collect less, Colorado's budget adjusts down to that new baseline level.
It's been estimated that if Kansas had put a TABOR budget in place in 1993 when Colorado did, taxpayers would have $980 million more to spend this year, instead of their state government wasting it.
But, politicians and the press in Kansas don't care about taxpayers. It is state government they worry about. Despite the fact that Colorado's TABOR has never caused that state to cut its budget from one year to the next, doomsday prophecies are being floated.
If Kansas would have enacted TABOR:
"the state would have to decide which universities must close, which would have applications for rural communities."
"When you think about the role of Pittsburg University in the economy of Pittsburg, or Fort Hays State in the economy of Hays, Kansas, that's substantial and significant economic impact." "might have included shortening the school years by 23 days," "taking away health care for 50,000 children," "eliminating all Medicaid payments to community health centers"
"eliminating prescription drug coverage for half of all adult Medicaid prescription drug beneficiaries." "the elderly will not get care." "will damage our quality of life by undermining the pillars of that life -- education and health care."
Why should we care about Kansas? Because it makes the point that no matter what population growth is (high or low), politicians and anyone receiving money from the government either directly, indirectly or tangentially will line up against TABOR, TASC or whatever you want to call it, knowing that some of their individual taxpayer-supported livelihoods may be at stake.
Remember, Nevada's state budget has been increased by over half just since 2003, with Republicans and Democrats alike engaging in the tax attack against Nevada citizens. Evidently there are two constituencies that vote consistently: seniors, and people with children. Thus, every scare tactic involves seniors and their healthcare, and kids and their education, as if the government is responsible for either.
The issue is that Republicans aspire to be elected the same as Democrats. Thus, legislators from both parties are all for doling out your dollars so that each can say, "I support education and making sure our seniors are medicated to their satisfaction. Please send me back to Carson City for 120 days of booze, babes and bureaucracy."
For those of us interested in freedom, rather than prison, hardwiring a restraint on spending and taxing into the Nevada constitution is a must. I can't be sure if Ike (who graduated from Abilene High a couple of years ahead of this scribbler) would be for restraining government growth (in his day he was considered a moderate), but I think he'd be appalled at what government has grown into.
Doug French, Liberty Watch Columnist
