The 2009 Session Was a Disaster, Let's Not Have Another
On April 4, 2009, the Courier-Journal published the following editorial by Executive Director Andy Hightower:
Let's Not Waste Our Time with a Special Session
The 2009 regular session of Kentucky's General Assembly has just ended, and Kentucky's political leaders can't stop praising themselves. Indeed, House Speaker Greg Stumbo said in a press release:
"This has been a highly productive time for all of Kentucky, from resolving the current budget crisis to enacting a multi-billion dollar road plan and greatly improving school testing."
That statement simply repeated an earlier sentiment as expressed jointly by speaker Stumbo, Governor Steve Beshear and Senate President David Williams:
"This session began with a commitment to work together to address the significant issues confronting the commonwealth. Today, we are continuing to honor that commitment and move forward in a way that will create jobs and economic opportunities for more Kentuckians."
In fact they have done nothing of the sort. The "significant issues facing the commonwealth" have been pushed aside or worsened. "Commitments" made to Kentuckians have been broken, and Kentucky's environment for "jobs and economic opportunities" has been made more difficult.
Entering the session, the most significant issues facing the commonwealth were a projected $456 million budget shortfall and a $30 billion liability overhanging the state pension system.
Responding to the projected shortfall, the legislature rushed tax increases (HB 144) into law. Instead of setting priorities and tightening budgets, they opted for new taxes and to spend every dollar of the state's "rainy day" fund twice over. It seems contradictory that these tax hikes were critical and that they do nothing to address budget needs, but that's exactly what Speaker Stumbo is telling us. He says they'll be back in a special session and they "will be voting on something, either more budget cuts or more revenue measures." These tax hikes were passed simply to avoid real budget decisions for another month.
The last special session has its own bad record of inaction: commitments made last June in HB 1 are already undone. HB 1 did not address the sustainability of the state pension system, but committed to responsibility fund the $30 billion obligation. The legislature has already broken that commitment, voting to borrow $50 million from the system (HB 143) and to delay the payments they promised to make (HB 117).
Now, Speaker Stumbo is discussing going even further: "in these economic times everything may well be on the table and it may well be that we cannot meet those payments and function as state government."
How can any of this be considered honoring commitments or creating better environment for jobs and economic opportunity?
The only consideration given to job creation this session was a Christmas-tree bill of dozens of tax breaks for well-connected industries (HB 229) that failed. Instead, the General Assembly acted to preemptively tax technologies that don't even exist here (HB 236), inviting them to stay out of Kentucky. They passed a new tax on digital services (HB 347) that will drive entrepreneurs across our border, a tax that even Governor Paterson wouldn't pass in New York.
The 2009 legislative session should be characterized as nothing less than a disaster. The cooperation they are so proud of is nothing less than a mutual agreement to abscond without action or responsibility.
Kentucky is burdened by leadership that is more serious about the next election than addressing tough problems. As the rhetoric rises and the chimes sound for the next wasteful special session, remember this dismal record and tell your legislators: "No thanks!"
