How to really underfund your big government

I thought it was pretty funny when Kentucky wanted to raise the cigarette tax to bring in more money for an ever-expanding number of overspending problems while also trying to get people to quit smoking.

Massachusetts is going to show our big spenders how it is done.

From the New York Times:

"To keep the state’s landmark universal health coverage plan afloat, Massachusetts lawmakers are looking to tap an increasingly popular source of financing for health-related initiatives: tobacco taxes.

If the state raises its tax by as much as $1 a pack, it will join New York — and possibly a number of other states — in enacting significant increases this year. The speaker of the Massachusetts House, Salvatore F. DiMasi, a Democrat, pushed the increase, to $2.51, through the chamber this month, and the State Senate president, Therese Murray, and Gov. Deval Patrick, also Democrats, have signaled support.

The $175 million in projected revenue would be used to shore up the state’s year-old mandatory health insurance plan. State officials say the plan, which is the first to require that individuals have coverage, is over budget because enrollment has been higher than expected for state-subsidized insurance policies offered to low- and middle-income workers.

The state subsidies were budgeted at $472 million for the first year but actually cost $625 million. Only months ago, Mr. Patrick proposed spending $869 million for the coming year, but his aides already acknowledge that will not be enough. The state recently agreed to increase its payments to insurers by 9.4 percent. More costs are being passed along to policyholders in the form of higher premiums and co-payments."

Let's hope this gives some of our slow learners pause before pushing again for socialized medicine in Kentucky.

Word association game: Clinton, intern

While the Ohio Democratic party is busily trying to nominate Hillary or Barack, you would be hard-pressed to find the names Clinton or Obama on the Kentucky Democratic Party site.

In fact I could only find the name "Clinton" once. It was in an essay written by Chairwoman Jennifer Moore recruiting young interns to serve the party in Frankfort. In the essay, she mentions that she served an internship in the White House. In the Clinton White House. In 1995.

Since you are wondering, 1995 was in fact the same year young Monica Lewinsky met Bill and Hill.

Taxpayers soaked -- and without pools!

I think we have had about enough of government officials cutting services while clinging to outlandish perks of office. The city of Louisville wants to close swimming pools rather than reduce the number of government employees driving home in expensive taxpayer-provided cars. A letter to the editor in today's Courier Journal lays out the details very nicely:

It's not that the purpose of government is to provide swimming pools. But given the choice, shouldn't we be cutting the fat around the bureaucrats before we cut something that benefits the public far more widely?

Possible VP candidate coming to Lexington

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell, subject of recent speculation about his future as a vice presidential candidate on more than one ticket, is coming to Lexington Tuesday, April 29.

"We had a deal"

Senator Damon Thayer lambasted House Speaker Jody Richards and Majority Caucus Chairman Charlie Hoffman tonight at Georgetown College for fumbling public employee benefit reform in the waning hours of the 2008 General Assembly:

The state faces a $26 billion shortfall in the accounts that fund state and local government employee and retiree benefits. Legislators appear to be headed back to Frankfort for a costly special session to address this failure.

FairTax Advancing

Kentucky's Sixth Congressional District Republican Party Convention just voted to support passage of the FairTax.

Delegate Don Strosberg of Frankfort attempted to have the resolution tabled on the grounds that it is "too complex." His motion failed on a voice vote.

Here is a video of the resolution:

Plugging Beshear for Veepstakes?

This is at least worth a laugh. I found one person who thinks Governor Steve Beshear is worthy of consideration as a potential candidate for Vice President.

Yes, of the United States.

Thanks to the folks at the Ballot Box Blog for making that one possible.

Meet Grover Norquist

One of the big-government types' favorite people to hate is coming to Kentucky in May. Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform will speak in Frankfort Tuesday, May 20 to a monthly gathering sponsored by the Bluegrass Institute.

If you ask nicely, I might let you come.

Beshear reiterates pension wisdom

The smartest thing Governor Steve Beshear has said yet about our $26 billion pension debacle is this:

"Not as accurate as I have been in the past?"

Watching Hillary Clinton try to turn her lie about Bosnia into a positive for her campaign last night was even more fun than watching her husband explain that the cigar was his.

Now let's have a repealing party

The ink is not yet dry on the last bills coming from the 2008 General Assembly and they are already talking about a special session to raise taxes, fix the pension mess, and other assorted items.

Two bills that should be repealed as part of the effort to clean up the $26 billion public employee benefits disaster are HB 470 from this year and HB 299 from 2005.

Both sides in Florida get cigarette tax increase

Governor Charlie Crist of Florida promised to kill a proposed cigarette tax increase. This is not a surprise, since Crist probably wants to keep his name on the VP short list.

But what is a surprise, perhaps, is that even the sponsor of the tax increase bill understands there are limits to what the tax can accomplish:

The proposed tax increase "is not something we dreamed up to try to balance the budget," Deutch told lawmakers. "It is something we introduced to try to save lives."

If approved, the bill's success would be marked by a drop in tax revenue, the result of fewer people smoking, Deutch said.

"That's what we want to happen," Deutch said. "We won't have an ongoing stream of revenue. We will see it shrink every year."

That's more than we can say for Kentucky's wild-eyed tax raisers.

Demand better educational opportunities now

Late last night, the Kentucky General Assembly made legitimate the state's illegal charter school. Now we must force them to allow this fine example of what school choice can be to be duplicated so we better serve the educational needs of our children.

The Gatton Academy of Mathematics and Science at Western Kentucky University was created in the 2006 budget with a $3.3 million appropriation, but no enabling legislation was passed to get around education laws prohibiting the kind of advanced training currently enjoyed by 120 high schoolers at WKU. Another $10 million in state money spruced up an old building on campus to house the new program.

Our current laws are set up to protect the status quo in the public schools. The Gatton Academy is an important leak in the dam. The tremendous opportunity presented to these few students involves spending tremendous resources. Now that we have agreed that the effort makes sense for some, we should do more to help those students who don't fit the public school mold bust out. With a little creativity, we could do so for much, much less money.

Ending Kentucky's old-fashioned prohibition of charter schools is the way to start this process.

Jerry Abramson tax tactics lose big

The General Assembly just completed an overwhelming smackdown on the Louisville Library Tax Increasers with a unanimous Senate vote.

A worthy Tax Day debate

Which is better, a flat tax or a national sales tax? Here's a good way of looking at it:

Grayson applauds death of gubernatorial runoff

Secretary of State Trey Grayson quickly sent out a press release approving a bill that could affect his next election.

The House this afternoon passed HB 370, which the Senate amended to include repeal of the gubernatorial runoff election. The bill now goes to Governor Steve Beshear, who is expected to sign it.

“Turnout in most runoff elections is abysmal which often leads parties to nominate a candidate with fewer votes than the top vote-getter in the original primary,” Grayson said. “This legislation is something that most, if not all, legislators agreed was bad public policy.”

Jason Mays comes out swinging

As the 2008 General Assembly session draws to a close, one of the biggest political questions for the upcoming elections is this: will Governor Steve Beshear go to Georgetown to try to save House Majority Caucus Chairman Charlie Hoffman?

Here is Hoffman's opponent Jason Mays:

KY GOP 6CD

Jon Larson is a Republican candidate for Congress in Kentucky's sixth district. Tony McCurdy is his opponent in the May primary. The winner will face Rep. Ben Chandler in November.
This is Jon Larson:


And here is Tony McCurdy:


Any first impressions?

Forgy: battle against casinos not finished yet

Republican stalwart Larry Forgy spoke in Winchester Saturday night about John McCain and the War on Terror, tax increase efforts in Washington D.C. and Frankfort, and Governor Steve Beshear's ongoing campaign to bring casinos to Kentucky.

Still looking for government waste?

If you aren't happy with how the General Assembly did this year, you will be interested to know they messed up their opportunity to shut down the Treasurer's office.

What a waste.


They also could have changed the rule that allows lawmakers to sit around the first month of each election year doing nothing, waiting (on the clock, of course) for the filing deadline to pass.