Does our state government create fiscal cruelty?

The Sherwood Gazette, Dec 24, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (2 Reader comments)

ADVERTISEMENTS

Instead, the last Legislature spent all the revenue and still raised taxes and fees by over $620 million. The Legislature pretended to create a Rainy Day Fund, filling it by raising taxes on businesses. However, by the time our current budget period ends in June it is likely there will be no money left in the Rainy Day Fund.

The Democrat majority squandered billions of your tax dollars on pet projects, pork-barrel spending to benefit their districts and big-money contributors. As one example, the Legislature spent $7 million on a downtown Hillsboro parking garage that could have been funded by the city and private businesses. Considering these “bridges to nowhere” in the current budget it’s no surprise the state is spending our Rainy Day Fund.

Responsible leadership is long overdue. Next month I begin my first regular session as your State Representative. I’m working hard to create a government that lives within its means and makes the same hard choices that families and businesses face every day.

The Legislature must abandon pet projects, protect vital human services and public safety programs, and commit to living on 6 percent annual budget increases. During good economic times the state must set aside revenue to help out when things get rough.

The alternative is continuation of the corrupt system of “pay to play” and the cruelty of holding our most vulnerable citizens hostage to generate voter support for tax increases.

Rep. Matt Wingard represents Oregon House District 26 which includes the communities of Wilsonville, Sherwood, Bull Mountain and Gaston.

<< Prev. Page 1 | 2

Facebook	Digg	Del.icio.us
Newsvine	Stumbleupon	Reddit

Reader comments

Re: Does our state government create fiscal cruelty?

Remember the fury of opposition by Salem special interests to the Measure 48 spending limit in 2006?

That measure would have limited general fund spending increases in this biennium to about 9% and left the remainder for a real rainy day fund (several billion $$).

The spending-coalition jabbered about some east coast millionaire donor and predicted drastic cuts if we passed that measure. It went down to defeat and then the new Democrat majority spent the difference (what would have been the M48 rainy day fund) on pay increases for state employees, new programs and more pork.

This is another engineered crisis and the only "solution" I expect to hear from Salem will be new tax increases.

"Eric Winters"

(email verified)

Fri, Dec 26, 2008 at 07:25 AM

Re: Does our state government create fiscal cruelty?

Governor Kulongoski and the Democrat majority have proven they care about people - as long as those people are members of the big Government Employee Unions. If you're a public school student, if you're disabled, if you're a senior citizen or business owner, the Governor and the Democrats are willing to take everything you have so they can give it to the Union bosses in exchange for campaign contributions and public support for policies that Unions otherwise shouldn't care about and know are bad for our society.