Gov. Easley: “We Have to Raise Taxes”

Recently, Governor Easley said “the jig’s up. We’re just going to have to get us a lot of new revenue.” While not surprising, it is troubling in that he now says he will not look for any other options besides additional taxes. Gov. Easley has again decided to take the easy way out and declare doom and gloom unless he is allowed reach even deeper into the taxpayers’ pocket for more money to fund an ever-growing state government.

At North Carolina Citizens for a Sound Economy, we believe there’s a better way.

Let’s see what some leaders have said about our current state budget challenges:

“It shouldn’t have taken a rocket scientist to know we were headed for problems financially,” said retired State Treasurer Harlan Boyles. “We were so carried away with the prosperous economy that we assumed all would be well. In 1991, the economy was our problem. In 2001, spending is our problem. We are our problem.” (Charlotte Observer, 2/11/2001).

“The state budget now is $14 billion, which is quite a sum,” he [House Speaker Jim Black] said. “Five percent of that is $700 million, which is about what we need. We ought to be able to find five percent. I want us to do that before we start passing lotteries and closing loopholes.” (Winston-Salem Journal and News & Observer, 2/23/2001).

“If North Carolina is collecting a record amount of tax revenue – most months it takes in more than $1 billion – why is the state facing its worst budget crisis in a decade? State tax revenues are higher than they’ve ever been; through six months of the current fiscal year collections are 2 percent ahead of even last year’s blistering pace. Trouble is, state spending also is increasing at a breathtaking rate. The budget adopted last July approved an 8 percent increase in state spending, a figure that now looks like so much pie-in-the-sky.” (North Carolina Citizens for Business and Industry, Legislative Bulletin, 2/2/2001)

“A quick way to save a large amount of money is to do away with the bear crossings that are scheduled to be constructed on the new sections of U.S. 64 between Plymouth and Columbia,” wrote David Earley, a Department of Transportation worker. “I have yet to find out who is going to teach the bears that they are supposed to cross the road only at certain locations. Most wild animals that I have seen cross the road anywhere they want to and when they get ready.” (Winston-Salem Journal, 2/14/2001).

Gov. Mike Easley declared a budget emergency on February 8, 2001. Since then, let’s look at his solutions for solving our budget problems:

  • Robbing county and city governments of $95 million
  • Growing the size of government by adding over $140 million of new government spending through a government-run lottery
  • Raising taxes by adding a new sales tax and allowing local governments to double the tax increase
  • Cleverly disguising tax increases called “closing loopholes” without offsetting (revenue neutral) the tax increases by reducing taxes on hard working families.
  • There’s a better way to solve our state budget issues without raising taxes.

    “We could get away this time without raising revenue,” House Speaker Jim Black said. “I think we owe it to our citizens to limit how much growth in spending we have every year.” (Winston-Salem Journal, 7/1/2001)

    We agree with Speaker Black!

    There’s a better way to solve our state budget issues without robbing local governments, putting our government in the gambling business, or raising taxes. Our governor and legislators need to stop taking the easy route and look further for solutions!