The Observer, March 31, 2006
Volume XXXVIII, Issue 22
Blackwell has right idea on government spending limits
I often find myself explaining the difference between Republicans and conservatives. Unfortunately, in Ohio this is not a difficult task. Many of the state's most prominent Republicans have positioned themselves squarely against a proposal to control the size of government. The state of the Ohio GOP has reached its nadir when its most arduous fighting is against small government provisions. If the GOP won't fight for fiscal responsibility, who will?
As I wrote in these pages a few weeks ago, Secretary of State Ken Blackwell is running for governor as the anti-establishment, conservative candidate. One of his major policy proposals is the Tax and Expenditure Limitation (TEL) amendment. The TEL would restrict the growth of annual government spending to the larger of either 3.5 percent or the sum of population growth and inflation. In other words, government would be forced either to increase efficiency or to cut other programs before creating new taxpayer-funded programs. To a conservative who recently had the misfortune of filling out his state income tax forms, this is a dream come true. To the state's Republican elected officials, it is a nightmare.
Ohio is one of the most highly taxed states in the Union. Not surprisingly, Ohio's economic growth is also among the lowest. This provision would force government officials at all levels – local, county, and state – to deal with the ugly, morose beast that is our state finances. However, when faced with prospect of the TEL amendment our local officials cry wolf. One speaker at a recent meeting of local public officials on the issue called the plan "the nexus of evil," for if the amendment succeeds, local officials could not simply raise taxes and spend willy-nilly. They would be forced to do what all households and companies do each year: prioritize expenses, make a reasonable budget, and stick to it.
Perhaps the most vocal opponent of the proposal has been Blackwell's chief contender in the GOP primary, Attorney General Jim Petro. Petro's campaign proudly sent me an e-mail with a column from the Plain Dealer's Sunday issue opposed to the measure. Brent Larkin, the column's author, wrote "passage could lead to lower bond ratings, make it extremely difficult to raise money for schools, curtail local government capital expenditures and bring the state's already-meager job growth to a screeching halt." This is simply fear-mongering.
Writing fiscal responsibility into the state constitution won't cause economic catastrophe, but ignoring the state's budgetary and tax woes may. The state's expansionary budgetary policies over the last few years – sadly under Republican administration – have done nothing to fix the state's economic woes or the sorry condition of many of the state's horrible school systems, because they never do. Throwing more tax dollars at the state's problems won't solve them. Only sound administration and significant cuts in the size and scope of government can make that happen.
In a few weeks the state's moderate and conservatives have a very important choice to make. We can choose Petro and get not just more of the same old Bob Taft governorship, but higher taxes and more wasted tax dollars in the state government. Or we can choose to stand up against the GOP establishment in Ohio. For years they have ruled the state government, and what have they given us? Bloated government, failing public schools, and high taxes. Let's take a stand, put Ken Blackwell in the governor's office, and give Ohioans a better future.
