The tax plan unveiled by Gov. Bill Graves on Monday won't fund any brilliant new initiatives, but it could help maintain state services until economic conditions improve.
During a meeting Tuesday with a small group of editorial writers from across the state, Gov. Bill Graves grabbed a printed copy of his State of the State address to quote a line he particularly liked.
"Here it is," he said, reading from the speech he had given the night before. "The critic without an alternative solution brings little value to this debate."
The statement more or less sums up the message Graves is sending to state legislators this year. The state faces significant budget problems, and Graves has put some proposed solutions on the table. If legislators don't like his ideas, he challenges them to come up with something better, but he's not willing to let state programs deteriorate because legislators are trying to live up to a no-tax pledge.
Graves said he thinks that some legislators still don't understand how serious the problem is. They continue to say that the state can tighten its belt or trim programs to balance the budget. But Graves says that's not enough to fill the funding gap.
In his speech Monday night, Graves unveiled a package he said he hopes will deal with the current budget problems. He supports raising the tax on a pack of cigarettes by 65 cents and adding 1 cent per gallon to the current gasoline tax. He also wants to increase the state's sales tax by a quarter cent to 5.15 percent and raise vehicle registration fees by 3 percent.
These are moderate measures that will have only a moderate effect on the state's budget. With the revenue Graves is suggesting, the state would be able to hold funding steady for higher education and raise state aid to public schools by $20 per student. State employees would get a 2 percent pay increase, unless they work in higher education. The Kansas Board of Regents would get $1 million for student financial aid and $7 million to distribute as they want, but even if they spent it all on salaries, it would not cover a 2 percent across-the-board raise.
State social services would get $10 million to provide services to the poor and disabled. And the state court system, which Graves said got some of the most favorable treatment in his plan, would get $4.1 million, enough to prevent further cutbacks, but not enough to provide any new district judges.
This is a classic "high and tight" Graves plan. He's asking only for what he thinks the state really needs, no more. But his plan also leaves little room for negotiation.
That's why the governor is taking a little different tone with lawmakers this year. He was irritated last year when legislators dragged their feet and blamed him because "he didn't tell us what to do."
"Well this year, I told you what to do," Graves said Tuesday. "We checked that off the list."
Graves and Lt. Gov. Gary Sherrer said they expect to see a lot of "smoke and mirrors" budget tactics in the Legislature, but Graves also believes legislators "will come to understand this is pretty serious stuff."
In his seven years as governor, Graves has been criticized for not showing stronger leadership in the state, but this year may be tailor-made for the Graves leadership style. There is no money for bold new programs; Kansas and many other states are just trying to maintain services until the economy improves.
In his speech Graves challenged lawmakers who have said there is "no sentiment" in their districts for a tax increase. Tax increases are never popular, but this year, the alternatives are even less palatable. Graves seems ready to stage what could be the strongest legislative offensive of his administration. Hopefully he will be able to convince anti-tax legislators that his modest tax proposal is the least they can do for the state.
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