A COURAGEOUS GOVERNOR

Bill McCune is a broadcaster, documentary maker and former Arizona legislator. In the Opinions Section of Today's Republic, McCune authored a Special to the Republic titled, "Brewer's Valor Merits Spot in History Books."

There is a difference between today's politicians and yesterday's political leaders. This article shines a light on the problem with today's political community. Too many politicians put themselves first and the good of the country and community last. Politics has become more of a business then a public service. The only concern our current crop of elected officials seem to have is how to get re-elected.. Public policy is being determined by campaign contributions and public opinion polls and not the public good. And powerful special interest have learned who to contribute to and how to manipulate public opinion to get what they want.

Where have all the statesmen gone?

In this last season of the Arizona Legislature, some members have been guided by dogma instead of practicality, theory over reality, and a pledge to a protegee of corrupt political operative Jack Abramoff, Grover Norquist, over doing what Arizona must do to close a devastating budget gap.

What follows is the full article by Bill McCune .


Brewer's Valor Merits Spot in History Books.
by Bill McCune, September 22, 2009.

Other then some political TV reporting, I have not spent time at the Legislature since I left the state Senate in January 1977. My focus has been Arizona history and the 80-odd documentary projects I've produced.

This year, however, the Legislature captured my attention - and not in a good way. It makes my mind wander back and remember others who had qualities quite in contrast:

I was in awe of Sandra Day O'Connor and Burton Barr as they worked to create a school-tax equalization law.

I remember legislators such as David Kret of Scottsdale and John Wettaw of Flagstaff.
Brillant! Tom Goodwin of Tucson made the University of Arizona Medical School happen. And Howard Adams, himself quadriplegic, gave Arizona its emergency-medical services and put paramedics into every fire department.

Every name I mentioned was a "conservative" Republican.

Now, we turn to that sad aggregation of today's legislative leadership. I wonder if any of the landmark legislation mentioned above would have been approved by the current cast. "Too expensive," So much for Arizona's future.

"Gotta get rid of government! What matters is this year's tax bills...and next year's election."

A real conservative takes a different approach:

Today, we struggle. We have to raise more revenue for a year or two perhaps. Revenue means taxes. It's the true conservative approach - balance the damn budget! It's in our Arizona Constitution.

And finally, this; if memory serves, Gov. Jan Brewer's very first political activity was campaigning door to door for my re-election to the House in 1972. Today, Jan and I would probably disagree on many issues. And that's just fine, for more importantly she has turned out to be a profile in courage.

She has stood up for her righteous beliefs - for schoolchildren, for the mentally and physically challenged. And stood up to pay for it! This, in direct opposition to the small-minded powers of her own angry party. Politically, she has everything to lose. And, indeed, may well lose it.

But in producing Arizona history documentaries, I've studied the political career of every Arizona governor. Never before has one so consciously chosen to stand up and be counted, come what may.

We are witnessing a courageous, historic moment in Arizona history.

IRON LADY of ARIZONA TAKES ACTION

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer today signed some budget bills to keep state government alive and line-item vetoed others with school funding cuts.

$250 million property tax repeal vetoed, casualty of refusal by a few extremist senators to allow voters to decide question of one cent temporary sales tax increase.

STATEMENT BY ARIZONA GOVERNOR JAN BREWER,
Source, Eye on the 9th Floor.

Good afternoon.

Today I have approved a number of budget bills that will allow state government to continue important operations -- and I have vetoed legislation that needs additional work and compromise.

Just as I said last March – I will NOT give up on the future of our State. I will NOT give up on education, I will NOT give up on the fight for our most vulnerable citizens -- and I will NOT allow the state we all love to fall into the abyss of bankruptcy.

The voters of Arizona don’t want me to give up, and I WILL NOT give up on them.

Right now, Arizona faces a roughly $4 billion deficit. We are spending roughly $11 billion, and we are bringing in roughly $7 billion.

So what can we all do – in addition to my actions today -- to solve this historic problem?

This fall and in the next regular session of the Legislature, legislative leaders and I must work to break the stranglehold that a handful of Republican and Democratic EXTREMISTS have on the Arizona legislature.

We cannot cut our way out of this problem. We cannot tax our way out of this problem. BOTH solutions will be necessary to resolve this crisis, and doing both will take incredible political courage and compromise.

This is a NOT a political game. It is gravely serious. It is a time to set aside political agendas, or personal campaign agendas, and -- for once -- place our State ahead of the tired and uncivil politics of the most extreme in both Parties.

46 Republicans, all but an extreme few, have now courageously trusted the voters on the issue of a temporary one-cent sales tax.

I have always trusted the voters during my 27 years as an elected official, and 46 Republicans have demonstrated – SO DO THEY!

Whether it is now -- or whether it is in the next several weeks -- the handful of extremists on the fringes of the Legislature will see the deeper and more painful cuts that will be necessary because of their delays on resolving the state deficit. Every month that goes by only makes the deficit and the pain more severe.

My actions today -- and the clean-up bill I have proposed -- will allow our State to weather the storm at least until the next regular session of the Legislature.

Until then, the voters of this State can be confident that we will continue to prioritize education, public safety, and protect our state’s most vulnerable.

Let me reiterate once more: I am NOT giving up, I am NOT surrendering, I am NOT abandoning what the people of Arizona want me to do. I am doing what is right, and I believe they know that.

I would be happy to answer a few questions…

How Reagan Closed Budget Gap

Many people who calls themselves Reagan Conservatives forget that before Ronald Reagan was elected as President of the United States in 1980, he was governor of California from 1967-75.

Reagan's election as governor in 1966 was his first public office. During the 1964 presidential campaign he served as cochairman of California Republicans for Goldwater.

After defeating incumbent Democrat Governor Pat Brown with 58 percent of the vote, Governor Reagan went on to establish a conservative record in restricting the size and cost of state government.

Just as Republican Arizona Governor Jan Brewer inherited a huge budget deficit from Democrat Governor Janet Napolitano, Republican California Governor Ronald Reagan inherited a huge budget deficit from Democrat California Governor Pat Brown.

What did Reagan do, how did he handle the budget disaster he inherited from his Democrat predecessor. Reagan immediately ordered a hiring freeze of new state employees and then cut the state budget across the board by 10 percent.

The father of Reaganomics did something else that may come as a shock to the blind followers of Grover Norquist and Americans for Tax Reform. Working with a cooperative state legislature, Reagan was able to obtain an increase of the state income tax together with welfare reform legislation that striped the less needy from the rolls and increased benefits for those that met higher eligibility requirements. By cutting expenses and increasing revenue, Reagan was able to close the budget deficit he inherited from his Democrat predecessor.

Fast forward 40 years and doesn't that sound familiar? Isn't that the same as what Conservative Republican Governor Jan Brewer is trying to do to solve Arizona's budget problem, cut expenses and increase revenue? It seems that the only difference between what Reagan did and what Brewer is advocating is instead of raising the income tax, Arizona will cut the income tax to stimulate spending and temporarily increase the sales tax by one penny to increase revenue to help close the gap. .

There is one important difference between Reagan and Brewer however, Reagan didn't have uncooperative state senators like Pamela Gorman and Ron Gould obstructing solving his budget crisis, Brewer and Arizona does.

Bob Haran,
American Conservative Republican

Nationwide -Tax Revolt- Report from East Coast

Nationwide -Tax Revolt- Report from East Coast


By Helaine Chersonsky

This is an observation from the Eastern shore; the Providence, Rhode Island tea party, held at the Rhode Island state house, was hugely successful. At least 2,000 to 3,000 people showed up. It was a sea of flags, placards and all ages participated; lots of young people attended which was gratifying. As I drove back to my current home in Massachusetts, the brisk spring evening held hopeful portent for me as a conservative and as an American. The bronzed statue of Nathaniel Greene; the epigram on the front of the Rhode Island state house about religious freedom gave me renewed inspiration for American revival. This is the stuff of real revolution; a revolution of activism instead of apathy, a revolution of thoughtfulness instead of negligence. People were joyful and uplifted. It was a seminal moment.

One of the founding fathers, it may have been Benjamin Franklin said, “The citizenry must be ever vigilant to keep the Republic” of America. We have left the running of our country to professional politicians, who have seduced us into thinking that they have our best interests at heart; in reality the politicians have acted like foxes in charge of our money, our freedom and our government, when it was always supposed to be the people who were supposed to be in charge of the government. That is what the founding fathers always knew: when politicians could vote themselves the largesse from the treasury into their pockets, there would be no stopping them in looting the treasury and in enslaving the general population. There is always the personal ego wish to be a king in every person; we now have 535 kings sitting in Congress, distributing largesse and abusing and oppressing regular citizens. It's time to say enough is enough and vote them out of office and establish term limits. Congressional fiefdoms have to be destroyed or they will destroy the American electorate and citizens and America will become a third-rate social experiment, without the freedom.

Tom Jenny Backs GOP Legislators Refusal to Hike Taxes

Tom Jenny, the director of the Arizona chapter of Americans for Prosperity (AFP), today applauded the announcement of a plan by Republican leaders of the Arizona Legislature to cover the state's $3.3 billion FY 2010 deficit without raising taxes. Senate President Bob Burns (R-Peoria) and House Speaker Kirk Adams (R-Mesa) outlined the plan yesterday at a meeting of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC).

Burns and Adams suggested $840 million in new spending reductions, $500 million in continuing reductions from FY 2009, $1.3 billion in federal stimulus funding, $390 million in fund transfers from non-general fund balances, and non-tax revenue of $300 million. The plan may involve some short-term borrowing.

Jenny said "We're not enthused about the debt financing elements, but it's better than raising taxes during a recession."

The Burns-Adams plan stands in contrast to Gov. Jan Brewer's proposal to raise taxes by a billion dollars a year for three years, which would amount to over $300 per Arizona household per year according to AFP AZ..

Recently released economic projections by the Goldwater Institute and the Beacon Hill Institute suggest that a billion-dollar sales tax increase would cost Arizona 14,400 private-sector jobs and a billion-dollar income tax increase would cost 26,000.

AFP AZ announced that Senate President Burns and Speaker Adams are welcomed to speak at the Taxpayer Tea party at the Capitol on April 15. "We welcome participation by all public officials who have not proposed a tax increase this year," Jenny said. Congressman John Shadegg and a number of state legislators are scheduled to speak at the event, which begins at 5:30 PM on the Senate Lawn. Over 2,000 have registered online for the event.

Town Hall set for April 16

The Maricopa County Republican Committee (MCRC) will be conducting a Town-hall to discuss the state budget at 5:45 PM, April 16 in the Scottsdale Civic Center Library Auditorium, 3839 N. Drinkwater Blvd, Scottsdale.

Confirmed speakers for the event are: Sen. Russell Pearce, Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee; Rep. John Kavanaugh, Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee; President Pro Tempore of the Senate, Senator Thayer Verschoor; and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Gray.

Topics to be discussed include; the impact of illegal immigration, alternative solutions to raising taxes and, why the Democratic party plan will hurt taxpayers.

MCRC Executive Director Tom Husband said, "It is very important that we conduct town-halls throughout the county to better inform voters and taxpayers as to the status of the state budget. We need to talk directly with our legislators. We are facing difficult economic times, as well as increasing alarm at what is transpiring in Washington."

Husband continued by saying that, "Republicans need to come to these town-halls and express their opinions to elected officials. Legislators are subjected to the pleas of special interest groups and paid lobbyist on a constant basis, but the taxpayers, who carry the burden of financing government, must also be heard. Come out and remind elected officials that they were elected to work for us and we intent to hold them accountable."

At a recent meeting of concerned citizens in Peoria, it was standing room only. "People are very concerned - not only about their personal budget but with what elected officials are doing with city, county, state, and national funds," Husband said.

Sandy Doty, is a Member-at-Large of the MCRC and is the person in-charge of organizing the event. She echoed Husbands thoughts, "People must get involved. We have scheduled some of our best legislators in a facility to seat a large group. If you really want to know what is going on down at the capitol you need to talk directly to your legislators. Unfortunately, the media is not giving us the whole story. We are hoping to get the other side of some of the budget problems out to the public," Doty said.

A $5 donation will be taken at the door and the Town Hall is open to the public. For information please contact Sandy Doty at 480-883-1097.

GOP Poll Finds Support for Tax

From the Arizona Republican Party.

Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Statewide Survey Shows Support for Balanced Budget Approach


Results show support for statewide sales tax as part of comprehensive plan
including cuts and use of stimulus funds.

PHOENIX – The Arizona Republican Party released results from a recent survey today showing strong public support for a temporary 1% statewide sales tax as part of a balanced budget approach.


The statewide survey conducted in partnership with Margaret C. Kenski, Ph.D. of Arizona Opinion and HighGround, Inc. was conducted over March 6 - 12, 2009, interviewing 607 high-efficacy, likely voters. When it came to taxes, here was the comprehensive question that was asked:


“I’d like to ask you how acceptable or unacceptable you find the following measures which would be considered in addition to spending cuts in order to preserve critical education and public health funding while the economy begins to recover. These taxes would be in the form of a constitutionally limited tax that would last for no more than three years and would automatically be eliminated without another public vote.


Let’s assume for the purposes of these questions that the Legislature and the Governor have already cut nearly $1 billion dollars in State spending by 2010, used all of the federal stimulus funds to balance the budget and still have a billion dollar per year budget deficit. All of the funds raised from these taxes would be dedicated towards maintaining 2010 spending levels for K-12 education, universities, community colleges, and health care for the poor. Each of the following measures would raise approximately a billion dollars per year.”


The results showed that 66.6% of the electorate supported a temporary 1% increase in the statewide sales tax to help bridge the gap to economic recovery, with nearly 40% considering it a very acceptable option.


39.7 % Very Acceptable

26.9% Somewhat Acceptable

9.1% Neutral

5.9% Somewhat Unacceptable

18.0% Very Unacceptable

.5% Unsure


The question gathered widespread support spanning party lines - Republicans found the sales tax 62.5% acceptable, Democrats 71.6% acceptable and Independents 64.6% acceptable.


“We were surprised by the level of support expressed by the electorate. It appears that Arizona voters would support a balanced approach in solving the budget crisis,” said Randy Pullen, Chairman of AZGOP. “Former Governor Napolitano and the Democrats in the legislature left us with a financial crisis on our hands. We all recognize Arizona government must learn to live within its means by reducing spending and reforming government. This Governor and Republican legislature have already made larger budget reductions and reforms than any previous governor and legislature. However, with continuing bad news on all fronts about declining tax revenues and the state having to borrow money next month to make payroll, the sooner the budget is balanced the better it will be for all Arizonans.


“We encourage the Governor and the Legislature to pursue any and all means necessary to right our current budget crisis and restore fiscal sanity to the state of Arizona,” concluded Pullen.


-30-

Tax Hike Could Cost AZ 14,400 Jobs

The Goldwater Institute today said that a new economic model shows a tax hike could cause 14,400 lost jobs as Arizona's economic output would fall by $1.2 Billion.

To close the state's budget deficit Governor Jan Brewer has proposed a $1 billion tax increase. New findings announced today show that if the State of Arizona were to implement a $1 billion sales tax increase, 14,400 private jobs would be lost.

These new findings are the result of economic modeling conducted by the Beacon Hill Institute at Suffolk University in Boston, Massachusetts. The Goldwater Institute (GI) asked Beacon Hill to examine the impact of a $1 billion sales tax increase on employment, state economic output, and incomes.

Beacon Hill found that a $1 billion sales tax increase would cause the state to lose 14,400 private sector jobs; the state's real economic output would decline by $1.2 billion; and Arizonans would see their total after-tax income, already hit hard by recession, fall by $760 million, or almost $300 per household on average.

In addition to the $1 billion tax increase proposed by the governor, Arizona property owners face a tax increase in July when the state equalization tax comes back on the books. Lawmakers and the governor could decide to permanently repeal this tax. In the event that lawmakers choose not to repeal it, and even if it becomes the only tax increase to go into effect this year, almost 4,000 private jobs and $385 million in after-tax income will be lost.

"The Beacon Hill Institute has an excellent reputation for modeling the real effects of tax changes," said economist Dr. Byron Schlomach, Director of the Goldwater Institute's Center for Economic Prosperity. "These numbers show that these tax increases will hurt our economic recovery by putting more Arizonans out of work."

In a December 18, 2008 policy brief, http://www.goldwaterinstitute.org/AboutUs/ArticleView.aspx?id=2460 , "A Fresh Start for Arizona: Proposals for Closing a Billion-Dollar Budget Gap," the Goldwater Institute says that tax increases are not an option and should not be on the table for discussion.

In just the last five years, Arizona General Fund spending increased 66 percent, while population and inflation grew at just 33 percent. The Goldwater Institute policy brief claims that in many cases returning agency budgets to fiscal year (FY) 2006 levels would do much to put Arizona on a more secure financial footing.

Some of the cuts suggested by the Goldwater Institute include; elimination of the Office of Tourism for a $10 million saving, elimination of the Department of Mines and Mineral Resources for $500,000 in savings, abolish the Board of Medical Students Loans to save $400,000.

Essential governmental services, such as courts and public safety, also didn't escape the Goldwater Institute's suggested cuts. The policy brief included a $5 Million cut to the Arizona Supreme Court and a 10% cut to the Department of Public Safety to save $6.3 Million and a 10% cut to the Department of Corrections to save $95 Million.

Op-Ed Against Cap and Trade

Op-ed by Tom Jenny and Phil Kerpe of Americans for Prosperity, arguing against passing a massive tax hike in the guise of climate change legislation.

Don’t Let Cap-and-Trade Become Tax-and-Spend
Tom Jenney and Phil Kerpe

The surprise revenue source to pay for much of the gigantic Obama budget is something known deceptively as “climate revenues,” also known as “cap-and-trade.” But Obama’s cap-and-trade plan is really a tax-and-spend plan. It would mean a trillion-dollar tax increase, with sweeping consequences throughout the economy, both nationally and here in Arizona.

A cap-and-trade tax hike is the worst kind of tax increase, because the tax increase is hidden behind a complex regulatory apparatus that only adds to the cost.

The size of the tax is a mystery. Companies know they have to pay a tax, but they don’t know what the tax rate is, because they will be forced by government to bid at auction for permits to use fossil fuels. The Obama budget initially slated the cap-and-trade auction process to generate approximately $646 billion in revenue for the federal government over eight years.

More recently, however, the deputy director for the White House National Economic Council, Jason Furman, reported that the tax scheme would actually raise two-to-three times that much, bringing in upwards of $1.3 to $1.9 trillion. The truth is that nobody knows how much it will cost — and that’s a large part of the problem.

We do know that the impact on our economy here in Arizona would be staggering. An analysis conducted by the respected forecasting firm SAIC and commissioned by the American Council on Capital Formation projected the economic impact of last year’s version of cap-and-trade for Arizona. They found that by 2020, with the bill in effect just eight years, we would have 23,000 to 34,000 fewer jobs, $800 to $2,600 in lower annual disposable income per household, and an annual hit to the Arizona economy of between $2.6 billion and $3.6 billion.

Much of the damage would be caused by significantly higher energy prices: 20 to 67 percent higher prices for gasoline and 23 to 30 percent higher prices for electricity. The study also found that lower-income families — people who are least able to absorb higher energy costs — would be hardest hit.

Those numbers were the projected impact of last year’s Lieberman-Warner legislation. We don’t have numbers yet on Obama’s new proposal, but it is more extreme and would be even more expensive.

These astonishing economic costs are not an unfortunate side effect of the bill. They are its intended purpose. President Obama explained to the San Francisco Chronicle last year that passing costs on to consumers is an important part of his plan. “Under my plan of a cap and trade system,” he told the Chronicle, “electricity rates would necessarily skyrocket… whatever the plants were, whatever the industry was, they would have to retrofit their operations. That will cost money. They will pass that money on to consumers.”

Worse, these tax increases may not buy us anything of value on the environmental side. Even if emissions targets are met, climate models show that the reductions would have no discernible effect on the global average temperature. The National Center for Atmospheric Research found that the Kyoto Protocol would reduce the global average temperature 0.07 degrees Celsius in 50 years and 0.15 degrees Celsius in 100 years. Feel-good symbolism is not worth trillions of dollars in higher energy taxes.

Lest we be accused of obstructing efforts to deal with climate change, we want to remind readers that AFP’s No Climate Tax campaign simply asks Congress to oppose any environmental schemes that result in a net increase in government revenue. In other words, climate policy should not become yet another excuse to transfer dollars from hard-working citizens to the bureaucrats in Washington and to the beneficiaries of pork-barrel politics.

Arizona Congressmen Jeff Flake and John Shadegg have already signed AFP’s No Climate Tax pledge (www.NoClimateTax.com). But the real fight will be in the U.S. Senate, and we can only hope that Sen. John McCain will decide to vote against any cap-and-trade scheme that raises overall taxes.

We cannot let cap-and-trade become tax-and-spend. The long-term health of our state and national economies may depend on it.

--Tom Jenney is Arizona director and Phil Kerpen is national director of policy for Americans for Prosperity (www.americansforprosperity.org).

Voters Oppose Tax Increase, Cuts, Support Sending Limits

AFP Arizona Releases Poll Results:
Likely Voters Oppose Tax Increases

Respondents Reject Deficit-Reducing Options,
Support Constitutional Spending Limit

PHOENIX – Likely voters in Phoenix and Glendale rejected sales and income tax increases by large majorities, in poll results released today by the Arizona chapter of Americans for Prosperity (AFP Arizona), a taxpayer watchdog group committed to fiscal responsibility and limited government.

Gov. Jan Brewer’s proposed billion-dollar-a-year tax increase fared badly in the poll, with 62 percent of respondents in Phoenix opposed, and 64 percent in Glendale. Opposition to tax increases crossed party lines, with 47 percent of self-identified “strong Democrats” in Phoenix opposed, and 52 percent in Glendale.

Respondents also rejected by wide margins a ballot proposition that would allow the state Legislature to make cuts to areas of the state budget that are currently protected from cuts, including parts of K-12 education and state health care programs for the poor.

“The poll results suggest that there’s no point in the Legislature trying to fix Prop 105 at the ballot,” said AFP Arizona director Tom Jenney, referring to the constitutional provision that makes it nearly impossible for the Legislature to make reductions to voter-mandated spending programs.

The least unpopular of the short-term deficit fixes was a proposal to sell state assets, including public lands, and privatize state functions. Fifty-five percent of respondents in Phoenix opposed the proposal, as did 52 percent in Glendale. The only short-term deficit fix that won approval of majorities of respondents was a proposal to allow gaming at horse and dog racing tracks to generate new revenues for the state.

“Nearly all of the deficit-reducing options are unpopular,” Jenney said, “so our elected officials may as well vote on principle.” AFP Arizona has urged the governor and legislators to hold fast to conservative principles and balance the budget by reducing spending, privatizing state functions, and selling state assets.

For a long-run solution to the state’s recurring budget woes, the poll asked likely voters how they felt about a constitutional amendment that would keep the state government from increasing its budget faster than the rate of growth of the state economy. Seventy percent of respondents in Phoenix and 78 percent in Glendale supported the proposal.

“The spending limit reform won’t fix our current problems,” Jenney said, “but it would go a long way toward preventing a budget deficit crisis in the next recession. At some point, the state of Arizona needs to get off the fiscal rollercoaster.”

Completed Monday night, March 23rd, the polling effort surveyed 300 likely voters in both Phoenix and Glendale on local and state-level tax and budget issues. The poll was conducted by Public Opinion Strategies, a firm with extensive experience in polling Arizona citizens. AFP Arizona released the survey results for local issues yesterday.

For the complete list of polling questions, visit www.aztaxpayers.org.

Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is a nationwide organization of citizen leaders committed to advancing every individual’s right to economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and scope of government is the best safeguard to ensuring individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens in support of restraining state and federal government growth, and returning government to its constitutional limits. For more information, visit www.americansforprosperity.org
# # #

Tom Jenney
Arizona Director
Americans for Prosperity
www.aztaxpayers.org
tjenney@afphq.org

Poll: Taxpayers Against Tax Dollar Giveaways

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – March 25, 2009Contact: Tom Jenney (602) 478-0146, infoAZ@afphq.org


Poll: Phoenix and Glendale Taxpayers Reject Special-Interest Subsidies

Large Majorities Oppose $100 Million City North Subsidy
and Possible Glendale Bailout of Phoenix Coyotes

Results on Gov. Brewer’s Tax Increase Proposal,
Legislative Budget Options to be Released Thursday

PHOENIX – Phoenix taxpayers rejected the $100 million City North subsidy, and Glendale taxpayers rejected a possible bailout of the Phoenix Coyotes, according to poll results released today by the Arizona chapter of Americans for Prosperity (AFP-Arizona), a taxpayer watchdog group committed to fiscal discipline and low taxes.

81 percent of Phoenix respondents expressed the opinion that the City North subsidy was an illegal gift of taxpayer money, compared with only 9 percent who said the subsidy was necessary to help the project land the city’s first Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s stores. 81 percent of Phoenix respondents also disagreed with the proposition that the long-term economic benefits of City North justified rebating $100 million of Phoenix taxpayer money to the project.

In Glendale, 72 percent of respondents preferred to allow the Phoenix Coyotes to move out of state, rather than have the City of Glendale give the team $3 to $15 million annually in local taxpayer subsidies. 24 percent preferred to use subsidies to keep the Coyotes in Glendale. 76 percent of respondents said the prestige of having a pro hockey team in Arizona was not worth the subsidies.

AFP Arizona director Tom Jenney expressed satisfaction at finding that large majorities of taxpayers rejected the Phoenix and Glendale subsidies. “Cities need to get out of the business of using taxpayer money to try to pick winners and losers in the economy,” Jenney said. “We are hoping that city officials around the state will pay attention to these poll results.”

Completed Monday night, March 23rd, the polling effort surveyed 300 likely voters in both Phoenix and Glendale on local and state-level tax and budget issues. The poll was conducted by Public Opinion Strategies, a firm with extensive experience in Arizona. AFP Arizona is releasing the survey results for local issues today, and will release survey results on state-level tax and budget issues on Thursday.

In the City of Phoenix, a $100 million tax rebate for the City North mixed-use development near the 101 and Tatum has stirred extensive debate. The legality of the Phoenix subsidy is now being considered by the Arizona Supreme Court, after the subsidy was deemed to be illegal by the Court of Appeals. Yet, it does not appear that any polling information has been done about the attitudes of the people—Phoenix taxpayers—who are being forced to fund the subsidy.

The questions the survey asked about the City North subsidy, and the poll results, are reproduced verbatim here:

Q: As you may know, The Arizona Supreme Court has been asked to review the legality of an approximately $100 million tax rebate that the City of Phoenix agreed to provide the developer of City North, a mixed use development near Tatum and the 101 Freeway in north Phoenix.

Some people say this money was necessary to help pay for a parking garage and to help the project land the city’s first Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s store.

...while...

Other people say that the taxpayer money is an illegal gift of public funds to a private developer and these companies should pay their own way rather than asking for such a huge amount from Phoenix taxpayers. Which statement comes closest to your own opinion?

9% MONEY WAS NECESSARY
81% TAXPAYER MONEY IS AN ILLEGAL GIFT

Thinking more about this issue...

Q: Now, I would like to read you a statement about the City North mixed-use development. After I read the statement, please tell me if you AGREE or DISAGREE with that statement.

The statement is... the long term economic benefit to having a mixed-use development like City North with national chains and other stores like Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s is enough that it is worth rebating $100 million of Phoenix taxpayer money to these companies and the developers.

And do you STRONGLY (agree/disagree) or just SOMEWHAT (agree/disagree) with that statement?

5% STRONGLY AGREE
11% SOMEWHAT AGREE
17% SOMEWHAT DISAGREE
64% STRONGLY DISAGREE

15%^ TOTAL AGREE
81% TOTAL DISAGREE

Meanwhile, the City of Glendale is reportedly considering paying for a bailout for the Phoenix Coyotes franchise, which is losing $30 million a year. As with the City North proposal, AFP Arizona wanted to know where Glendale taxpayers stood on the possibility of spending millions to further subsidize the team—after having already spent $180 million of local taxpayer dollars on the Coyotes’ arena.

Some of the questions the survey asked about further subsidies for the Coyotes, and the poll results, are reproduced verbatim here:

Q: As you may know, the Phoenix Coyotes are having significant financial difficulties, and the current ownership is considering selling the team. I’d like to read you two different options facing team ownership, and please tell me which one you prefer...

…keeping the Phoenix Coyotes in Glendale, even if it costs the city of Glendale three million to fifteen million dollars in local taxpayer subsidies each year, or allowing the team to move out of state?

24% KEEP PHOENIX COYOTES IN GLENDALE
72% ALLOW TEAM TO MOVE OUT OF STATE

Q: Now, I would like to read you a statement about the Phoenix Coyotes’ relationship with the city of Glendale. After I read the statement, please tell me if you AGREE or DISAGREE with that statement.

The statement is... the prestige of having a pro hockey team in Arizona is enough that it is worth having the city of Glendale spend millions of dollars in local taxpayer subsidies to keep the Coyotes here.

And do you STRONGLY (agree/disagree) or just SOMEWHAT (agree/disagree) with that statement?

5% STRONGLY AGREE
16% SOMEWHAT AGREE
26% SOMEWHAT DISAGREE
50% STRONGLY DISAGREE

21% TOTAL AGREE
76% TOTAL DISAGREE

Tomorrow, AFP Arizona will release findings on the attitudes towards various proposals that have been set forth to deal with Arizona’s massive budget deficit.


Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is a nationwide organization of citizen leaders committed to advancing every individual’s right to economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and scope of government is the best safeguard to ensuring individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens in support of restraining state and federal government growth, and returning government to its constitutional limits. For more information, visit www.americansforprosperity.org
# # #

Tom Jenney
Arizona Director
Americans for Prosperity
www.aztaxpayers.org
tjenney@afphq.org

Obama to Protect Mexico from America.

Smuggle addictive drugs into the U.S. and destroy the lives of Americans, no problem.

Millions of Mexicans invade the U.S. and take jobs from our citizens and lower American wages, no problem.

Violate American sovereignty, no problem.

Murder American citizens, no problem.

Allow illegal immigration to cost state and local government and U.S. taxpayers billions of dollars, no problem.

Trespass and violate the property rights of Americans living near the border, no problem.

Expose Americans to contagious disease, no problem.

Overburden American schools and provide bi-lingual education for the children of illegal aliens at taxpayer expense, no problem.

U.S. guns in Mexico, now that's a problem the U.S. government must take care of immediately by securing our border with Mexico from those troublesome Americans.

In response to the deteriorating situation in Mexico, mostly caused by the corruption of the Mexican government, the United States government has finally decided to get serious about securing the border.

The U.S. will be redeploying over 360 people from various government agencies to the Mexican border. And as part of a $184 million plan, we will be sending more biometric technology equipment, mobile X-Ray machines, license plate readers and other high tech inspection equipment to the border. Not to stop; terrorist, illegal drugs and, illegal aliens from entering the United States, however, but to inspect traffic entering Mexico.

President Barack Obama of the United States, who is responsible for the national security of the United States, told the American people during a televised news conference that , "The steps that we've taken are designed to make sure that the border communities in the United States are protected, and you're not seeing the spillover of violence, and that we are helping the Mexican government deal with a very challenging situation." Obama further said that, "We are going to continue to monitor the situation, and if the steps we've taken do not get the job done, then we will do more."

Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa said that, "These are important actions of support for the fight that President Felipe Calderon's government is carrying out."

U.S. Congressman Raul Grijalva, who does a better job of representing Mexico then American citizens said, "the long-term issue is to reconnect and redefine our relationship with the country of Mexico, our neighbor, and begin working with that country in order to deal with economic-development issues, health issues, education issues, so that Mexico can sustain its own people and its own workforce."

Gabrielle Giffords, who represents Arizona's Eighth Congressional, blames America first and says, "The money flows south and the guns are flowing south and the drugs flow north because of the big demand that we have." Giffords complained that, "Ninety percent of the weapons seized from Mexican organized crime comes from the United States."

The American Conservative Republican can only pray that some day the demands of the American people for a secure border to protect us from; terrorism, illegal drugs and illegal aliens, will have nearly as much influence with the U.S. government as protecting Mexico from American guns.

The American people shouldn't worry however, the Obama administration is still considering a request from Arizona Governor Jan Brewer and Texas Governor Rick Perry to boost the number of National Guard troops on the border, to protect American citizens from; terrorist, drug smuggling and illegal immigration.

AZ Senate GOP Leadership Wants to Balance Budget With No Tax Hike.

Arizona Senate Republican leadership has called upon the Senate to tap creative and innovative resources and work in concert with the Senate Appropriations Committee to balance the FY 2010 budget without a tax increase.

Senate President Bob Burns from Peoria said, "As members of the Appropriations Committee are going line by line through JLBC (Joint Legislative Budget Committee) spreadsheets, looking to reduce expenditures and define efficiencies, we are calling upon other members to help us identify new ways to balance this budget."

Senate President Bob Burns

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Gray of Mesa feels that the budget can be balanced without additional taxation, "We are working hard to solve the problem and I am optimistic we can close this gap without increasing taxes," he said. Gray pointed out that, "Even President Obama is not suggesting a tax increase during a recession."

Senator Pamela Gorman of Anthem, the Senate Majority Whip, explained that, "Right now we've got the equivalent of a yellow pad of ideas that we have to winnow down to viable budget solutions." Gorman wants input from the public, "We also need to do what we can to make it easy for the public who have suggestions, especially ones backed by expertise and experience, to get those to us," she said.

Democrats have been complaining that they are being shut out of the budget process, Burns refuted that claim however, "That is not true," he said. Burns went on to explain that his door as Senate President is open to all members who want to talk with him about new ideas to resolve the budget deficit.

Burns said "I meet with Senator Garcia every week." Senator Jorge Luis Garcia of Tucson, is the Democratic Minority Leader. Burns continued, "If Democrats feel they are being cut out of the process, they need to talk to their minority leader."

The American Conservative Republican just wants to remind lawmakers that the people of Arizona are also hurting during this recession, not just state government. Just because the state has the power to reach into the taxpayer's pocket does not mean that it should. Money is a resource that should not be wasted and large organizations, public or private, tend to waste money regardless of how much they try to spend wisely. The individual is the best steward of their own money, not government. Please remember the admonition of Jefferson that, "The government that governs least governs best."

Bob Haran,
American Conservative Republican

TREASURER DEAN MARTIN: Arizona Must Borrow NOW

Compiled from the Office of Arizona Treasurer, Google News and, the East Valley Tribune.

Maybe Chicken Little was right, the sky is falling.

Before Janet Napolitano resigned as governor and went to Washington to serve as Secretary of Homeland Security, leaving Arizona with a fiscal crises, Arizona Treasurer Dean Martin announced that the state may have to borrow to meet state spending obligations. Napolitano, a Democrat, called Martin, a Republican, Chicken Little.

When Martin convened a meeting of the state Loan Commission, which consist of the governor, treasurer and, director of the Department of Administration on January 8 of this year, to ask the commission to set a maximum rate to borrow money, Napolitano angrily called the meeting a publicity stunt, and borrowing was premature and not necessary.

The recession has continued to reduce Arizona tax collections and Martin yesterday said Arizona needs to resort to rare short-term borrowing to bridge an expected April cash shortfall.

This is the first time since the Great Depression in the nineteen thirties that Arizona has had to borrow money to prevent state checks from bouncing.

Martin pointed out that the problem is cash flow. On April 15 the state must pay around $650 million in school aid, however, there will be less then $ 400 million in the state treasury on that date, therefore, Arizona must borrow.

Martin says, "the state is literally living paycheck to paycheck."

BREWER: Those Opposing Tax-Hike "in Denial."

The Arizona Republic today reported that Gov. Jan Brewer said lawmakers opposing a tax hike are in denial of the severity of the state's fiscal crisis, she urged legislators from both parties to rally behind her "budget-rescue plan."


The American Conservative Republican respectfully disagrees with the governor, lawmakers are not "in denial" of the severity of the fiscal crisis, they just disagree with the governor's solution of a temporary tax hike.


There are some very good reasons why members of the legislature may disagree with Brewer. The state government of Arizona may be hurting and in a financial crisis because of the recession , however, the taxpayer is also hurting and many are themselves suffering a financial crisis caused by the recession.


Is it right that government empties the pocket of the taxpayer to help solve its financial crisis simply because, it can? Kings once had such power to tax, now they don't and the people elect legislators to represent their interest.


Taxes are the price we pay for civilization. If we want a government to protect our rights and provide those things that we can't do ourselves, we must pay for it. Nobody likes taxes, but people are willing to pay them, if taxes become overly burdensome however, taxes should be cut and the size and scope of government should be reduced to what the taxpayer can pay for without depriving and hurting their own families.


The average citizen doesn't have the time to study the intricacies of the state budget. The determination of the balance between the amount of government and how much to tax is the duty of the people's elected representatives. If the citizen disagrees with their elected representatives, they have the power to replace them. To throw the responsibility of making the difficult decision of a tax hike to the ballot, where the spending special interest would dominate the debate, would be a dereliction of duty by the people's representatives.


The legislature should have the power to cut the size of government down to what the people can easily afford, however, if we have to hike taxes to pay for the essential services that the people need, then do it and the people will let their representatives know on election day if they agree or not.

Bob Haran,

American Conservative Republican

Thayer Verschoor: REDUCE SALARIES BEFORE RAISING TAXES.

With talk of a small temporary tax increase to raise state revenue, Senator Thayer Verschoor asked the Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) to calculate the savings associated with reducing state employee salaries to no more then that of the governor, $ 95,000. Verchoor said we should do that before raising taxes.


The JLBC reported back to Verchoor that based on information from the Department of Administration (ADOR) and the Board of Regents (ABOR), reducing state employee salaries to no more then the governor's salary would reduce General Fund expenses by approximately $ 76.2 million.


Under the ADOA system, 390 General Fund employees make over $ 95,000. Reducing their salaries to $95,000 would decrease General Fund expenses by $10.6 million, $ 8.9 million in salaries and $1.6 million in Employee Related Expenses (ERE), such as payroll taxes, agency pro rata charges and retirement contributions. Counting all funding sources, including Federal Funds, a total of 602 employees make over $95,000. Reducing all salaries would decrease total agency expenses by $ 15.4 million, $13.1 million for salaries and $ 2.4 million for ERE.



2,457 UNIVERSITY EMPLOYEES MAKE OVER $100,000


For the Universities, JLBC only had salary data recorded in $10,000 bands. As a result, that part of the JLBC analysis looked at salaries over $100,000 instead of $95,000. Counting all funding sources, including tuition, a total of 2,457 university employee make over $100, 000. Counting all salaries over $100,000 would decrease total university expenses by $166.7 million, $ 138.9 million in salaries and $ 27.8 million for ERE. The General fund share of those savings would be $ 65.6 million, $ 54.6 million in salaries and $ 10.9 million for ERE.


In addition to the 2,457 university employees making over $100,000, there are 747 university employees making between $90,000 and $100,000.


The American Conservative Republican believes that Sen. Verschoor may be on to something. $95,000 is a good salary, anyone making that much money is not going to starve or become homeless. Most people making that much are in responsible, leadership positions in the state government and as leaders, they should be willing to take a cut in pay to help the state provide essential government services for the people, such as courts and public safety.


Before putting the hand of the government in the pocket of people struggling to make ends meet, reduce the salary of those responsible for making the government's ends meet.

Bob Haran,

American Conservative Republican

Arizona Tax Day Tea Party on April 15

The Arizona chapter of Americans for Prosperity along with allied pro-taxpayer organizations will be holding a Arizona Tax Day Tea Party at the Arizona State Capitol's senate lawn on Wednesday, April 15th from 5:30 to 7:00 pm.

Tom Jenny, State Director of Americans for Prosperity said in a release that, "We need to protest (and stop!) the tax increases proposed by big-spending politicians at the federal, state, and local levels."

Jenney asks that everyone who will be attending the Tea Party let him know by sending an email to info@afphq.org

Pullen Responds to Norquist Opposition to AZ Tax Increase

Grover Norquest of Americans for Tax Reform sent an e-mail to Arizona legislators opposing Governor Jan Brewer's suggestion of a possible $1 billion tax Increase.

Arizona Republican Party Chairman Randy Pullen published his response to Norquist's e-mail on his blog, "Pullen for the Party." http://azgop.typepad.com/

Here is the original e-mail to Arizona legislators from Norquest followed by Pullen's response.

Dear Legislator,

I am writing to strongly urge that you oppose Governor Jan Brewer’s plans for a $1 billion in annual tax increases on Arizona taxpayers.

One of the few things economists of all political stripes can agree on is that the last thing you want to do in a recession is raise taxes. Raising taxes in the current economic downturn will hurt Arizona families and encourage businesses to relocate across state lines, taking jobs with them.

According to the Center for Fiscal Accountability, Arizona taxpayers already spend 194 days – more than half the year – working just to pay for the cost of government. Furthermore, many Arizonans are already wondering how to cope if President Barack Obama’s budget – which contains over $1 trillion in tax hikes over the next 10 years – is passed into law. In this environment, Gov. Brewer’s proposed tax hikes will serve as the proverbial straw that breaks the state’s economic back. Irrespective of the form in which it passes, it will have an adverse and deleterious impact on the Arizona economy and taxpayers.

I urge you not to be fooled by claims this tax hike would be “temporary”. History has proven that ‘temporary’ tax hikes are about as prevalent in nature as unicorns. Point of fact, Arizonans that have land line phones are still paying the “temporary” tax hike put in place to fund the Spanish-American War of 1898.

Do not forget – Arizona does not have a budget shortfall – it has an overspending problem. According to the Goldwater Institute, the state’s general fund spending has grown at double the rate of population and inflation over the last five years – 66 percent compared to 33 percent. For the Arizona economy to recover and prosper, the size of government must be reigned in.

Families all over the Grand Canyon State are cutting back, making tough decisions, and prioritizing in order to live within reduced means. The state must do likewise.

Some elected officials view taxpayers, rather than tenured bureaucrats, union bosses and other spending interests, as their constituents. Americans for Tax Reform commends those elected officials who work for Arizona taxpayers rather than against them. Feel free to call on me or ATR’s state government affairs manager, Patrick Gleason (pgleason@atr.org) with any questions or concerns.


Onward,
Grover G. Norquist

This is Arizona Republican Party Chairman Randy Pullen's response.

A Modest Response to Americans for Tax Reform

Friends,

Earlier today, Americans for Tax Reform sent an e-mail to Arizona legislators highly critical of Governor Brewer's budget plan. While I think Grover Norquist and his team are incredibly smart people whom I consider friends, their e-mail warranted a response:

I understand your perspective on Arizona not having a shortfall but an overspending problem. I agree. It has been that way since Governor Napolitano essentially took control of the budget process after the 2006 election. With a weak republican legislature, she had her way. Now with the worst recession since 1982, we are in dire straits. As I said at the meeting yesterday, If we had Tabor in place during the entire decade, we would still have overspent by $200 million in 2008, $1.5 billion in 2009, $2 billion in 2010 and $2 billion in 2011 and so on. It would slowly start to decline and later this decade (2015+) it would be back to balanced. My point is this is no longer just government overspending, this is a real structural deficit and tax revenues are in free fall.

Do the governor and legislature need to continue to cut spending? Absolutely, and they will. This governor has already cut more than any governor before her. Besides pay cuts for teachers and state employees, 1,300 employees have been laid off and 15,000 have taken furloughs, and more to come.

There have been suggestions that the state sell buildings. In case you have not noticed, now is not the best time to be selling real estate, especially in Arizona. OK, that will generate a billion dollars, it would help, but it will also cost $80 to $90 million a year to lease back the buildings, which adds to the structural deficit (if the building were sold in an up market, the annual cost would be $30 million a year less).

The Goldwater institute has some good ideas on additional cuts and they need to be included where possible. They don’t have a plan for balancing the budget. They also have some ideas which represent their libertarian agenda and are not politically mainstream.

Finally, I do appreciate your position and respect what ATR is trying to do – reduce the size of government. Government will be greatly downsized in Arizona and rolled back literally five years to at least the 2006 level. I wish we could do more if possible, but we do run up against the reality of elections. If we want to continue to govern, we need to remain the majority party. While I am not in a position quite yet to be able to evaluate that risk, I will be in the near future. This is as much art as it is science and a balancing act. I will trust my instincts as they have been more right than wrong.

In the past 50 days, we have seen truly what it means to be the party in the minority. My goal is not to replicate this in Arizona in 2010.

Your hard hitting attack with claims such as taxes never go away, and this will be the straw that breaks the camel’s back are inflammatory and will not change the outcome of this debate in Arizona. If it ends up being a tax increase then Arizona taxpayers and tax credit receivers will have to give Arizona about 20% of their tax rebate from Obama. A real back breaker. If you are right, then the Ds will win in November because we will have destroyed Arizona’s economy and voters will throw us out and replace us with Ds and we will have more liberals gone wild in Arizona. I will retire and get to do a lot more fishing. You will be able to say I told you so. If you are wrong, we will have a stronger republican party, smaller government and a mandate to continue reforming government in Arizona. I will retire and get to do a lot more fishing. You will have learned a valuable lesson that will serve you well the rest of your professional life. I hope you will appreciate the gift.

Randy Pullen

Initiative Filed to Limit Property Tax

The national Tea Party has found its way to Arizona.

Prop 13 Arizona, a citizen's initiative to limit property taxes, has been filed with the Arizona Secretary of State.

Arizona has the most complicated and complex property tax laws in the nation with few property owners understanding how their assessed value or tax bill was calculated, whether it is accurate or fair.

The current tax system has the government completely in charge. Taxing districts decide how much they want to spend, calculate your portion of it and send you the bill. Prop 13 Arizona changes the balance of power and limits how much you can be taxed.

Modeled after California's successful Proposition 13, the initiative rolls back valuations to 2003 full cash value for properties purchased before January 1, 2004, and actual purchase price for properties purchased after that date. It caps total tax at 0.5% for all residential property and 1% for all other real property, limits valuation increases to 2% per year, and eliminates overrides and exceptions to the tax cap.

Property owners will experience tax savings primarily through reductions in the tax rate. Those who bought at that top of the market will see immediate tax savings via the tax rate reduction. In the future, they will experience additional savings from the 2% annual cap on valuation increases. Currently, there is no limit on the annual increase in full cash value or the secondary taxes associated with the assessed full cash value.

Like Prop 13 in California, Prop 13 Arizona transitions Arizona to a purchase-price based system. It eliminates subjective and unfair valuations and the need for assessment appeals. The formula is easy to understand and easy to calculate. Buyers will know their tax obligation for as long as they own the property with no surprises. If they can keep up with a maximum 2% increase per year, they will never be taxed out of their home.

The initiative was kept as close as possible to California's Proposition 13, since it has survived constitutional challenges all the way to the US Supreme Court, where it was upheld in 1992.

Details of the initiative can be found at www.Prop13Arizona.com