Greater Baton Rouge Business Report: Queen bee: the tax sting

I was wondering when it would happen. Gov. Blanco's honeymoon is over. The queen bee has shown her true colors as a "good ol' tax-and-spend, liberal, Looziana Democrat." In fact, in this session, it is starting to seem like she hasn't met a tax she doesn't like. Some of her allies or staff might have tried to justify that tendency when the state was facing purported deficits and looming cuts. But NEW taxes when the state has projected increased revenues and no financial crisis or shortfall? That stings!

So what position did Gov. Blanco take on raising taxes as a candidate asking for our votes during the campaign? At the Baton Rouge Press Club in 2003, she said she would only raise taxes "if we (hit) rock bottom and don't even have the ability to do basic things." Does anyone argue we are at "rock bottom" and can't take care of the basics?

So if the governor does need more money, what about being frugal and accepting her own challenge? "I challenged the entire executive branch to live with less money," Blanco said in March. But as to how they have done in trimming spending? "We have cut all we can cut," says Kim Hunter Reed, the governor's policy director.

Instead of trimming the fat or cutting the waste--or simply making tough choices as many families in our state have to do--Gov. Blanco wants to spend $900 million more, a total approaching $19 billion. Louisiana spending is once again simply out of control.

If you wonder how big a billion is, here's a couple of interesting facts to put it into perspective. A billion seconds ago, it was 1959. A billion minutes ago, Jesus was alive. A billion hours ago, our ancestors were living in the Stone Age. But in Louisiana government spending, a billion dollars was just 21 days ago!

In this session we are seeing taxes proposed for cigarettes, rental cars, hotels, football tickets, concessions and hospitals, to name a few. Why, with $18 billion in funds, do we need another dime to spend? I am told, the new budget is about $10 billion more than it was in 1990. That is more than a 100% increase. If you had accounted for inflation--compounded--you might reach a 50% increase. So where is the other $5 billion being spent? And what are the taxpayers getting in return? (This does not even include capital outlay money spent on building projects.)

John LaPlante pointed out in his column in The Advocate that Blanco was bragging her budget would only increase 50% less than inflation. Now it will grow 50% greater than inflation. She has learned that political trick of talking out of both sides of her mouth.

After these large increases in spending, what do we have to show for it? Is our state off the bottom of the poverty list? Have we moved out of the bottom 10 in education scores? Do we have in-migration or out-migration? Is our state economy and number of jobs growing faster than other Southern states? Do we have lots of new infrastructure to show for it? (Can you believe with all that state spending we couldn't get Perkins Road widened in the last decade? Shameful.) In other words, where is the return on investment ... other than getting a few politicians re-elected?

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Some may point out that much of this increase came under the former Republican governor, Mike Foster (a Democrat turned Republican). Correct. The conservatives who helped him get elected turned out to be some of his most vocal critics for his taxing policies and increases (as well as his favorable treatment of gambling expansion.) While he did pump a good portion of the increase into universities and community colleges, he too failed to rein in government and hold back tax and fee increases. He also didn't deal with our dependency on federal health-care dollars.

Blanco is carrying on the populous Louisiana tradition that has (dis)served us so well. She is now "negotiating" with legislative holdouts for her needed votes. As Laplante pointed out in his column, her lust for more taxes has caused her to compromise her previous stands, including restoring the urban and rural "slush funds" and backing off her strong ethics bill to improve our poor image outside the state among top executives who could bring jobs. Maybe Blanco has decided that taxes TODAY are better than JOBS for tomorrow.

It is never enough. Government has an endless appetite for more money. If there were a history of planning that had priorities and accountability with clear results for taxpayers--and criminal prosecution for abuse by politicians or government workers--then people might feel better about where their money is going. But the way it is now and with our history in Louisiana, who wants to give another red cent?

Are they crazy?

Louisiana has the third highest rate of alcohol-related fatalities in the nation. Why would we want to do anything to make it easier to drink and drive? Are some of the legislators crazy? A house committee gave approval to House Bill 754, which would allow 6,000 convenience and grocery stores, which are licensed to sell beer and liquor now, the ability to sell mixed drinks as long as they are frozen and put into cups with a lid. (Then it wouldn't violate the open container law. What a joke.)

I am proud to say that Baton Rouge Rep. Hunter Greene led the opposition. It seems that hundreds of convenience stores are already breaking the law and selling frozen daiquiris, but the state has not been enforcing the law until recently. Rep. Troy Hebert, the bill sponsor, said current law already allows for the sale of "closed alcoholic beverage containers" at corner stores--and the bill would simply get the commissioner off the backs of vendors.

Let's all sympathize with the poor vendor who is being harassed for selling frozen mixed drinks in a "closed container" (with a lid) that just happens to contain a straw whereby the driver can consume while behind the wheel and go kill some innocent victim on the highway. Will Rep. Hebert come sympathize with the loved ones of the dead at the funeral?

Not worth it

I see where Metro Councilman Ulysses "Bones" Addison wants to raise the pay of council members from $300 to $1,500 per month. On Wednesday, Addison will present a resolution proposing to change the Plan of Government to boost the pay and ask voters on Oct. 15 to approve the hike.

This is the same council who won't let you and me vote on changing the Plan of Government to limit terms of boards and commissions. But they are willing to let us vote on a raise for themselves. How thoughtful.

In my opinion, most of the council members aren't worth the $300 a month we pay them, so you know how I would vote on a raise. How about you?

Congratulations

Hats off to the women recognized in the cover story in this issue. They join many others in our community (and also on our staff-see page 76) who have made Baton Rouge a better place.