Illinois General Assembly—income tax increase supported by whom?
Yesterday, in relation to the proposed income tax increase, I wrote “The Governor’s (Governor Pat Quinn—my addition) threat to cut such programs generated the results he had hoped for. Groups, who benefit from such programs, including those who work for the programs, immediately began lobbying for an income tax increase. The Peoria Journal Star’s “letters to the editor” has been filled every day with people opposed to the cuts and supporting a tax increase to “save” the programs. Rallies have been held at the Capitol in support of the services provided. The Governor, himself, declared that the people of the State were a charitable people and would not let such services be cut. (By the way, it is NOT charity if you are forced by law to pay for it!)”
Later that day, I went through the newspapers that had accumulated. Here are some quotes from articles discussing the situation.
From the Peoria Journal Star, June 24, 2009, page A1, “‘There’s not a human service provider that has gone untouched in the state, so to find a lawmaker who has not received a call from a human service provider, from Cairo to Rockford, would be unimaginable,’ said David Ormsby, the Illinois Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Association spokesman.”
A human service provider, of course, is an employee of the State of Illinois, or an employee of a local unit of government that receives money from the State of Illinois, or an employee of a for profit business or of a non-profit organization that receives money from the State of Illinois to provide a “service” to select people and groups within the State of Illinois. Want to receive help from the State of Illinois? Then, just become an alcoholic or become drug dependent and you will receive help from the State through human service providers who often belong to the Illinois Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Association whose members either directly or indirectly are paid through the budget of the State of Illinois. Thus, you have employees of the State, either directly or indirectly, lobbying legislators of the State of Illinois to increase the income taxes of everyone in the State of Illinois to pay their wages so that they can provide services to select people and groups within the State. They are lobbying to keep their jobs at the expense of all the people of the State of Illinois!
From the same paper on the same date, page A5, “The state’s largest employee union also is helping organize the fight against the threatened budget cuts.
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees has put up a Web site, encouraging members to send e-mails to local lawmakers and helped organize rallies, said local union council spokesman Anders Lindall. Besides state employees, the union’s members include 5,000 people who work for community nonprofit agencies that serve the developmentally disabled and have been notified about potentially drastic state funding cuts.
At Tuesday’s rally, Paula LeRoy of Paris (a town in Illinois—my addition), who works for Human Resources Center of Edgar and Clark Counties (an employee paid indirectly through the State budget—my addition) said her organization gets multiple daily e-mails from state agencies warning of budget cuts and asking the organization to contact lawmakers. (Did you catch that! State agencies that are financed with State tax money are asking local agencies to lobby State legislators to NOT cut State agency budgets and, ipso facto, to increase the State income tax to pay for the new budget. If not illegal, is it unethical for State employees, who benefit from the continued funding of their agencies, to ask other agencies to lobby State legislators to continue the State’s overspending?) The Human Resources Center in turn tells clients (people and groups who are being “served” with State money—my addition.) to contact officials in Springfield.”
So, here is the chain of communication:
1) The Governor declares that a 50% increase in the State income tax must be approved or drastic cuts will have to occur in human services programs.
2) The State’s agencies, which are part of the executive branch, tell local agencies to lobby State legislators to increase the State income tax.
3) Local agencies tell their clients to lobby State legislators to increase the State income tax.
4) Clients tell their friends and families to lobby State legislators to increase the State income tax. (Not stated but an obvious progression from the above—the more who are lobbying; the more the likelihood of success)
5) The governor, State employees, local employees who are paid indirectly by the State, the clients, their friends, and families of all these groups are all lobbying State legislators to increase the State income tax so that the State can go on spending more and more money without ever establishing priorities or cutting overall spending. (By the way, I will state confidently, without ever having seen either budget, that the Governor’s proposed budget for this fiscal year is greater than the budget for the previous year when including new program add-ons and increases in the budget approved by the State General Assembly.)
From the Peoria Journal, June 21, 2009, page A7—“Web Words scrapings from pjstar.com on a variety of topics,” “hunt wrote: ‘So why should state employees be exempt from layoffs? The government always looks to raise taxes first when a shortfall exists. Cut some services that are probably not needed and then evaluate. You might find that we can get along just fine without all the current state employees.’
avoter wrote: ‘Nobody wants to see people lose their livelihood, but desperate times require drastic measures. Poor economic conditions, lack of competent management, and fiscal irresponsibility have led companies nationwide to endure closings, restructuring, bankruptcies, and layoffs. Our government representatives have failed to responsibly administer our funds and answer our primary concerns. The response for this failure should be the same as any other failed endeavor: closings, restructuring, bankruptcies, and layoffs. Don’t dare starve the people while the banquet continues for the government elite.’”
By the way, the theory taught in Economics 101, when I was in college which was advanced by a liberal economist, was that during good times the government should decrease spending and/or increase taxes to provide for a surplus budget—actually having more money than was spent. This is sometimes known as saving money for a rainy day. Meanwhile, during bad economic times, the government should spend more money and/or decrease taxes to increase the circulation of money within the society.
The problem has always been that most governments don’t seem capable of actually spending less money than they receive. They can always find something “good” to spend the money on. Consequently, when times are bad, their first reaction is to increase taxes to make up for the revenue lost so that they can continue spending more money. Do you recognize the State of Illinois?
From the Peoria Journal, June 26, 2009, page A4—“Letters to the editor,” “If anyone wants to see what state employees are paid go online to www.herald-review.com/datacentral/salaries.php.” (I have not checked out this site but provide it for you if you wish to check it—my addition.)
The State of Illinois will NOT get government spending under control by giving government more money. Giving the State more money is like giving a drunk more alcohol so that he can drink himself sober. It won’t happen!
As I wrote in yesterday’s post, the only real and permanent solution is the solution that every one of us has available. Spend only the money we have after setting the appropriate priorities and save some of that for the inevitable “rainy day.” Set priorities and don’t create new programs that can’t be paid for and don’t expand programs that aren’t working and can’t be paid for. Wait! There can’t possibly be programs that don’t work, can there?
As I’ve said before, NO tax increase should be passed until and unless the General Assembly and the Governor DEMONSTRATES that they are fiscally responsible in handling the money already provided. This has NOT been demonstrated to this point!
Yesterday, in relation to the proposed income tax increase, I wrote “The Governor’s (Governor Pat Quinn—my addition) threat to cut such programs generated the results he had hoped for. Groups, who benefit from such programs, including those who work for the programs, immediately began lobbying for an income tax increase. The Peoria Journal Star’s “letters to the editor” has been filled every day with people opposed to the cuts and supporting a tax increase to “save” the programs. Rallies have been held at the Capitol in support of the services provided. The Governor, himself, declared that the people of the State were a charitable people and would not let such services be cut. (By the way, it is NOT charity if you are forced by law to pay for it!)”
Later that day, I went through the newspapers that had accumulated. Here are some quotes from articles discussing the situation.
From the Peoria Journal Star, June 24, 2009, page A1, “‘There’s not a human service provider that has gone untouched in the state, so to find a lawmaker who has not received a call from a human service provider, from Cairo to Rockford, would be unimaginable,’ said David Ormsby, the Illinois Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Association spokesman.”
A human service provider, of course, is an employee of the State of Illinois, or an employee of a local unit of government that receives money from the State of Illinois, or an employee of a for profit business or of a non-profit organization that receives money from the State of Illinois to provide a “service” to select people and groups within the State of Illinois. Want to receive help from the State of Illinois? Then, just become an alcoholic or become drug dependent and you will receive help from the State through human service providers who often belong to the Illinois Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Association whose members either directly or indirectly are paid through the budget of the State of Illinois. Thus, you have employees of the State, either directly or indirectly, lobbying legislators of the State of Illinois to increase the income taxes of everyone in the State of Illinois to pay their wages so that they can provide services to select people and groups within the State. They are lobbying to keep their jobs at the expense of all the people of the State of Illinois!
From the same paper on the same date, page A5, “The state’s largest employee union also is helping organize the fight against the threatened budget cuts.
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees has put up a Web site, encouraging members to send e-mails to local lawmakers and helped organize rallies, said local union council spokesman Anders Lindall. Besides state employees, the union’s members include 5,000 people who work for community nonprofit agencies that serve the developmentally disabled and have been notified about potentially drastic state funding cuts.
At Tuesday’s rally, Paula LeRoy of Paris (a town in Illinois—my addition), who works for Human Resources Center of Edgar and Clark Counties (an employee paid indirectly through the State budget—my addition) said her organization gets multiple daily e-mails from state agencies warning of budget cuts and asking the organization to contact lawmakers. (Did you catch that! State agencies that are financed with State tax money are asking local agencies to lobby State legislators to NOT cut State agency budgets and, ipso facto, to increase the State income tax to pay for the new budget. If not illegal, is it unethical for State employees, who benefit from the continued funding of their agencies, to ask other agencies to lobby State legislators to continue the State’s overspending?) The Human Resources Center in turn tells clients (people and groups who are being “served” with State money—my addition.) to contact officials in Springfield.”
So, here is the chain of communication:
1) The Governor declares that a 50% increase in the State income tax must be approved or drastic cuts will have to occur in human services programs.
2) The State’s agencies, which are part of the executive branch, tell local agencies to lobby State legislators to increase the State income tax.
3) Local agencies tell their clients to lobby State legislators to increase the State income tax.
4) Clients tell their friends and families to lobby State legislators to increase the State income tax. (Not stated but an obvious progression from the above—the more who are lobbying; the more the likelihood of success)
5) The governor, State employees, local employees who are paid indirectly by the State, the clients, their friends, and families of all these groups are all lobbying State legislators to increase the State income tax so that the State can go on spending more and more money without ever establishing priorities or cutting overall spending. (By the way, I will state confidently, without ever having seen either budget, that the Governor’s proposed budget for this fiscal year is greater than the budget for the previous year when including new program add-ons and increases in the budget approved by the State General Assembly.)
From the Peoria Journal, June 21, 2009, page A7—“Web Words scrapings from pjstar.com on a variety of topics,” “hunt wrote: ‘So why should state employees be exempt from layoffs? The government always looks to raise taxes first when a shortfall exists. Cut some services that are probably not needed and then evaluate. You might find that we can get along just fine without all the current state employees.’
avoter wrote: ‘Nobody wants to see people lose their livelihood, but desperate times require drastic measures. Poor economic conditions, lack of competent management, and fiscal irresponsibility have led companies nationwide to endure closings, restructuring, bankruptcies, and layoffs. Our government representatives have failed to responsibly administer our funds and answer our primary concerns. The response for this failure should be the same as any other failed endeavor: closings, restructuring, bankruptcies, and layoffs. Don’t dare starve the people while the banquet continues for the government elite.’”
By the way, the theory taught in Economics 101, when I was in college which was advanced by a liberal economist, was that during good times the government should decrease spending and/or increase taxes to provide for a surplus budget—actually having more money than was spent. This is sometimes known as saving money for a rainy day. Meanwhile, during bad economic times, the government should spend more money and/or decrease taxes to increase the circulation of money within the society.
The problem has always been that most governments don’t seem capable of actually spending less money than they receive. They can always find something “good” to spend the money on. Consequently, when times are bad, their first reaction is to increase taxes to make up for the revenue lost so that they can continue spending more money. Do you recognize the State of Illinois?
From the Peoria Journal, June 26, 2009, page A4—“Letters to the editor,” “If anyone wants to see what state employees are paid go online to www.herald-review.com/datacentral/salaries.php.” (I have not checked out this site but provide it for you if you wish to check it—my addition.)
The State of Illinois will NOT get government spending under control by giving government more money. Giving the State more money is like giving a drunk more alcohol so that he can drink himself sober. It won’t happen!
As I wrote in yesterday’s post, the only real and permanent solution is the solution that every one of us has available. Spend only the money we have after setting the appropriate priorities and save some of that for the inevitable “rainy day.” Set priorities and don’t create new programs that can’t be paid for and don’t expand programs that aren’t working and can’t be paid for. Wait! There can’t possibly be programs that don’t work, can there?
As I’ve said before, NO tax increase should be passed until and unless the General Assembly and the Governor DEMONSTRATES that they are fiscally responsible in handling the money already provided. This has NOT been demonstrated to this point!
posted by Christian Gunslinger at 4:59 AM
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