October 2003 Volume 10 Number 10

October 2003 Volume 10 Number 10

Taxation Without Limit

October 01, 2003

Some Oklahoma politicians are in a tax-boosting mood. They want to raise taxes of all sorts - income taxes, sales taxes, property taxes, excise taxes, you name it. According to the National Taxpayers Union, the average Oklahoman already pays more in taxes - Federal, state, and local - than for food, shelter, clothing, and transportation combined. This amounts to 26.5 p... Read More >

Read Their Lips: No New Taxes

October 01, 2003

Alabama voters went to the polls last month and overwhelmingly (68 percent to 32 percent) rejected tax increases proposed by Republican Gov. Bob Riley. A few days after the vote, in a story headlined "Other states hear Ala.'s loud 'no' on taxes," USA Today reported that "states will have a hard time raising taxes to balance budgets following the decisive rejection by A... Read More >

Writing Budgets Based on Core Principles

October 01, 2003

With Oklahoma now beginning the process of performance-based budgeting and zero-based budgeting, our experience in the state of Washington may be instructive. In 2003, many states experienced financial bow waves from previous years' spending commitments coupled with an economic recession. Large deficits are the result in many states and most short-term fixes have been... Read More >

Pigging Out: An Insider's View

October 01, 2003

In June the Oklahoma Supreme Court invalidated the state CIP (capital improvement projects) bond issue from the year 2000. The bond issue would have raised $157.5 million for various projects all over the state. Included in the bond issue was $5 million for the State Capitol dome, $2.7 million for a wetlands project near Frederick (home of then-House Speaker Loyd Benso... Read More >

What Oklahoma Can Learn From California's Folly

October 01, 2003

No one is completely useless," the saying goes, "he can always serve as a bad example." With people and businesses fleeing California's tax-spend-and-regulate environment, the Golden State can serve as an example of how not to craft fiscal policy. An Aug. 26 story in USA Today ("Exodus shows tarnished side of Golden State") confirms that Californians are voting with... Read More >

Why Today's Teachers Need Retirement Reform

October 01, 2003

In Shakespeare's classic, Hamlet, Marcellus comments that "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark." This famous line referred to the ruling class, shortly after the death of Hamlet's father and his mother's marriage to his uncle. Written centuries ago, these words still ring true today. Today, many Oklahoma parents and taxpayers sense that something is awry in the pub... Read More >

Oklahoma Needs Real Tort Reform

October 01, 2003

Earlier this year Governor Brad Henry signed into law so-called tort reform legislation. While Oklahoma is in need of tort reform, the bill signed into law is anything but. It is limited to emergency room and childbirth liabilities. While other states are responsibly reacting to a judicial system out of control, Oklahoma lags behind due to a failure of political will. O... Read More >

Monopoly Leaves Thousands Unprepared for College

October 01, 2003

In Aesop's fable "The Man and the Lion," when both creatures came to a statue of Heracles tearing the jaws of a lion, the man smugly declared, "See - that's how strong we are!" "Ho!" the lion laughed. "A man made the statue. It would have been quite a different scene had a lion made it!" The moral: "It all depends on the point of view, and who tells the story." In... Read More >

New OCPA Headquarters on Horizon

October 01, 2003

It is an exciting time for OCPA. During our recent 10th Anniversary Dinner at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, an important announcement was made which we believe will have a significant impact on the future of free market ideas in Oklahoma. The announcement? OCPA is planning to move from our present 1,150 square feet of office space, in an industrial park,... Read More >

Quote Unquote

October 01, 2003

We thought you'd enjoy these quips and quotations. Read More >

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