Taxquist wants tax reform; the answer is spending reform

Posted by LibertariansIn2002 ^® , Jul 26,2001,22:28

"This bill is certain to cause our great state irreparable injury and puts our state on the path to disaster," Sundquist said. "Our citizens want us to lead our state out of this crisis. Our citizens deserve a better budget."

You have that right. We can start with spending reform.

Followups

answer is spending reform; then sharpen your pencil

Re: Taxquist wants tax reform; the answer is spending reform -- LibertariansIn2002

Posted by Skip Swiller , Jul 26,2001,23:59

MetroBlab

Alright, start talking numbers. Give me your cost savings and relate them to the efficiencies you think can be achieved, the programs that can be cut, the percentage decrease in the department budgets.

Quit spoutin' your slogans and war cries and get specific. Otherwise you're wasting your breath and my time.

Sloshingly yours,
Skip Swiller

answer is spending reform; then sharpen your pencil

Re: answer is spending reform; then sharpen your pencil -- Skip Swiller

Posted by LibertariansIn2002 ^® , Jul 27,2001,00:27

MetroBlab

Okay silly boy, here are the details. And guess what? Despite Taxquist's claims that he needs more money, the state actually had a surplus estimated at over 100 million by the time the fiscal year ended for 2000-2001. In another word, there is no debt. So there is certainly no need for an income tax to cover extra spending, much less it being unconstitutional.
Here are the details:

According to F&A, in fiscal year 1998-99, a dozen state agencies and programs did not spend at least $1 million of the funds appropriated to them. Overall, $103 million in tax dollars appropriated by the legislature from the general fund was not spent.

The next fiscal year, 1999-2000, the overall surplus rose to $113 million and 15 different agencies or programs did not spend at least $1 million of the general fund dollars the legislature appropriated for them.

In February, the Sundquist Administration estimated the surplus at the end of the 2000-01 fiscal year would reach $110.75 million. Gerald Adams, deputy commissioner of Finance & Administration, tells TIPP that the exact total of the surplus won�t be known until September, when the state closes the books on fiscal year 2000-01,

Education�s Big Surplus
Amid a laundry list of programs that don�t spend every dollar they are given, the Department of Education stands out � especially because Gov. Don. Sundquist has insisted the Department of Education is under-funded and taxpayers need to shell out more, via an income tax, to increase funding for the department.
But isn�t education underfunded? Well, in fiscal year 1998-99, the Department of Education did not spend $19.8 million the legislature appropriated for it. The next year, the Department left $26.5 million unspent.
That�s more than $46 million. Only the Department of Correction, at $48 million, left a bigger departmental surplus.

That unspent $46 million could have helped educate a lot of children.

Below is a list of unspent funds, using data provided by the Department of Finance & Administration, that program�s total FY 2000-01 budget, and the proposed "improvement" in each department�s budget in the Sundquist Administration�s original budget proposal for fiscal year 2001-02. TIPP will produce an updated version of this chart when the data on unspent funds in the FY 2000-01 budget is available.

Tennessee�s Annual Budget Surplus
Compared to Proposed
Spending Increases
KEY:

Department
Fiscal year 1998-99 unspent funds
Fiscal year 1999-2000 unspent funds
Department�s budget in FY 2000-01 (recurring appropriations)
Proposed Increase for FY 2001-02

Court System
$3,560
$40,149
$72,584,800
$1,037,900

Attorney General
$1,868,747
$1,272,387
$13,928,700
$4,400

District Attorneys General
$754,460
$294,962
$40,435,600
$832,300

Public Defenders
$55,268
$468,687
$23,993,500
$472,400

Comptroller
$2,994,237
$3,871,734
$42,332,700
$231,000

Treasury
$200,060
$450,712
$556,100
$0

Executive Department
$266,100
$162,734
$3,902,700
$27,700

Commissions
$2,093,520
$930,165
$30,133,400
$3,137,900

Finance & Administration
$778,054
$1,235,162
$11,615,800
$2,500,000

Personnel
$889,932
$788,318
$4,301,000
$573,500

Board of Probation & Parole
-- na
$4,174,497
$52,912,100
$3,057,000

Agriculture
$610,794
$3,281,714
$55,248,200
$2,500,000

Department of Correction
$27,813,116
$20,631,895
$453,914,550
$14,209,100

Department of Education (K-12)
$19,841,299
$26,525,192
$2,566,915,700
$129,712,400

Commerce & Insurance
$2,019,153
$2,031,144
$38,665,300
$1,272,500

Labor & Workforce Development
$2,071,738
$3,883,783
$23,110,000
$472,400

Department of Health
$13,100,632
$11,105,710
$98,316,500
$6,125,900

Department of Human Services
$1,301,303
$557,210
$154,823,500
$1,328,300

Department of Revenue
$1,309,006
$2,366,359
$42,382,625
$2,562,000

Department of Safety
$6,706,504
$8,510,008
$105,870,800
$6,174,200

Miscellaneous Appropriations
$14,174,218
$4,044,644
$24,424,400
$131,602,300

Source: Tenn. Dept. of Finance & Administration for columns 1, 2; Sundquist Administration Feb. 2001 budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2001-02
- 30 - Tennessee Institute for Public Policy

answer is spending reform; then sharpen your pencil

Re: answer is spending reform; then sharpen your pencil -- LibertariansIn2002

Posted by Funkless ^® , Jul 27,2001,02:15

MetroBlab

Ouch.

--Funkless

answer is spending reform; then sharpen your pencil

Re: answer is spending reform; then sharpen your pencil -- Skip Swiller

Posted by LibertariansIn2002 ^® , Jul 27,2001,00:23

MetroBlab

Here are the details: