“Itap clearly a budget. Itap got a lot of numbers in it.”
— George W. Bush
Last November, Gov. John Hickenlooper delivered a $28.5 billion budget to the Colorado legislature for fiscal year 2017-18. For those of us who prepare our modest household budgets using napkins and Crayolas, such a number is simply mind-boggling, the monetary equivalent of a light year.
Even this massive amount of money will not cover new constitutional and statutory spending demands, leaving a shortfall of several hundred million dollars. Legislative economists have labeled Colorado’s economy as “subdued.” There is no doubt that the state is suffering from declining revenues that cannot be covered by holding bake sales and car washes.
Notwithstanding Oscar Wilde’s cogent comment that “anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination,” Colorado must find a way to do exactly that. The governor has accurately assessed the harsh reality of the situation, stating bluntly, “We are going to have to cut everything.”
In the face of such a large deficit, imposing a hefty tax increase on the wealthy may seem like an expedient option. But before the legislature pursues that route, they should consider what British politician George Osborne had to say: “Just as we should never balance the budget on the backs of the poor, so it is an economic delusion to think we can balance it only on the wallets of the rich.”
Since it appears inevitable that the budget ax must fall, how best might lawmakers commence this excruciatingly painful process? First, they should all invest in heavy-duty ear protection to muffle the screams of outrage as they slice and dice state spending. People will agree that, yes, of course spending must be cut, but get your hands off my program. Don’t you dare touch my agency. Let someone else take the hit. Woe betide any legislator who ignores this public outcry.
There is one option legislators could at least consider: reducing the size of the state work force. That doesn’t mean getting rid of line employees who do all the heavy lifting either. Instead, lawmakers should take a cue from the old movie “Nine to Five,” where three fed-up secretaries kidnap their nasty boss and no one ever misses him. If half of all state managerial positions were eliminated, would anyone even notice?
When the state finds itself as short of cash as it currently is, the temptation for lawmakers to raise taxes can be nearly overwhelming. Fortunately, thanks to TABOR, Colorado taxpayers are protected from politicians raising taxes as high as the cruising altitude of a 747. This is very important, because history provides evidence that high taxes can have dire consequences.
Many historians believe just such a situation contributed to the decline and fall of the Roman empire. For many years, a succession of emperors had debased the currency and imposed ruinous taxes on the populace, driving many to starvation. By the fourth century, the country’s tax structure was so oppressive that many farmers simply gave up their land so they could receive public entitlements. According to historian Joseph Tainter, “Those who lived off the treasury were more numerous than those paying into it.”
Fifth century Roman historian Zosimus observed that “as a result of this exaction of taxes, city and countryside were full of laments and complaint. All sought the help of the barbarians.” It seems that the empire was brought down as much by desperate citizens inside the gate as barbarian invaders outside the gate.
Colorado should restore fiscal integrity and move toward solving its budgetary woes with a laser-like focus on spending cuts because, as Sen. Everett Dirksen once said, “a billion here, a billion there — sooner or later it adds up to real money.”
Teresa Keegan works for the courts in Denver. E-mail her at b161tak@yandex.com.
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