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Glendale Busts Its Budget and Plans to Raise Taxes

April 23, 2012 By 5 Comments

By Carrie Ann Sitren

How do you close a $35 million budget gap? Perhaps the better question is why that hole was dug in the first place. One answer for the City of Glendale is hockey. In fiscal year 2012, the city added $20 million (up from only $1.2 million the year before) to its operating budget for the Jobing.com Arena, where the Phoenix Coyotes hockey team plays. The NHL has been demanding financial support from the city since 2009, when the team filed for bankruptcy.

Instead of looking for ways to cut arena operating costs, city officials are considering a 0.8% increase in the sales tax. This would make Glendale the city with the highest sales tax rate in the nation. It would also be enough to cover the $20 million city payment for Coyotes hockey next year.

In other cities, like Oakland, taxpayers don’t pay high dollars for someone else to manage their arena. Instead, professional management groups compete for that right. Arena management can be a profitable business, with groups maximizing concert and other entertainment events and keeping the revenues from concessions and ticket sales. Meanwhile, cities benefit because they don’t have to pay the operating costs. In some arena contracts, like the Sprint Center in Kansas City, the city also gets a cut of the profits. Last year, arena management added $1.8 million to Kansas City’s budget.

A few million dollars in the door would be a well-needed substitute for $20 million going out of Glendale for its arena. We have yet to see city officials open bidding for management. Given the heavy competition for it in other cities, Glendale should consider that option before asking taxpayers to cough up more sales taxes and for another year of hockey.

Carrie Ann Sitren is an attorney with the Goldwater Institute.

Learn more:

Goldwater Institute: Goldwater Institute v. City of Glendale

Arizona Republic: Glendale Budget Looking Bleak

Associated Press: No Team, No Problem for Kansas City’s Sprint Center

Filed Under: Arizona Politics, City Government, Debt, Spending

When Debt Is Not Debt and a Government Isn’t a Government

April 5, 2012 By 3 Comments

By Mark Flatten

Click image to enlarge
Unpaid Balances

Open your wallets even wider, Arizona taxpayers.

You may already know that every American is on the hook for just under $50,000, each person’s piece of the $15.6 trillion in debt run up by the federal government.

But what you may not know is that so much more is owed in your name; about $10,258 for every Arizonan’s share of the $66.5 billion in debt and unfunded obligations borrowed by state and local governments.

In a new report, Debt and Taxes, the Goldwater Institute breaks down that debt. It also enters the strange world of public finance where debt is not debt, governments are not governments and billions of dollars in obligations are supposedly traded without risk.

Most of the debt racked up by state and local governments – about $44 billion – is in bonds issued by the state, counties, cities, school districts and hundreds of other taxing authorities created as stand-alone governments under Arizona law. Billions more comes from shortfalls in pension plans for government workers. There is even $1.3 billion in payments the Legislature simply chose not to make to balance the state’s budget that is just floating around on the books.

The Arizona Constitution is supposed to limit the state’s total debt to $350,000. The tabs that can be run up by local governments have their own caps as well. But the courts have determined those limits only apply to certain types of debt. So governments in Arizona rely far more heavily on borrowing that is not confined by constitutional restrictions or requirements for voter approval.

The Goldwater Institute has developed a series of policy recommendations to curb the ability of state and local governments to bypass voters and avoid constitutional restrictions on issuing debt.

Why should you care? State Treasurer Doug Ducey said it best:

“Taxpayers should care about it because it’s an obligation that they or their children are going to have,” Ducey said. “People should be concerned about the amount of debt, the type of debt, and the fact that there is no overall plan to pay down the state debt.”

Mark Flatten is an investigative reporter with the Goldwater Institute.

Learn more:

Goldwater Institute: Debt and Taxes: Arizona Taxpayers on Hook for $66 Billion Tab Run Up by State, Local Governments

Goldwater Institute: Recommendations for Reform

Filed Under: Arizona Politics, City Government, Debt, Economic Development, Economics, State Budget, State Economy, State Government

David Schweikert on with CNBC’s Larry Kudlow

March 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Is the U.S. economy falling off the cliff? Watch the fireworks fly as Arizona Congressman David Schweikert talks takes, entitlements, Geithner’s amnesia, and the Left’s serious math problem on CNBC’s Kudlow Report.

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Filed Under: Debt, Elected Officials, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Spending, Taxation Tagged With: ,

“Conservatives” Angling for a NEW National Tax?

January 18, 2012 By 4 Comments

 

Right when we should be CUTTING spending (not just the rate of increase, but ACTUAL spending) and lowering taxes, certain elements of the RNC and “think tanks” are angling not just to keep existing spending and taxes going but ADD an entirely NEW federal tax for us to pay.

What the heck is going on, aren’t we in the midst of a teaparty?

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Is a European Style VAT Tax the GOP’s Answer to the Growing Federal Funding Crisis? 
 
With all the GOP candidates fussing over Mitt Romney and his track-record at Bain Capital, does it not strike anyone as odd that none of them are putting the screws to the Massachusetts Republican in debates over his unwillingness to rule out a European-style Value Added Tax (VAT)?
Mitt and VAT (Valued Added Tax)
While Romney says he doesn’t want to go down the path of European socialism, in a recent Wall Street Journal he did not rule it out and even suggested that it might be an option.
 
The lack of clarity on this subject is ominous given that a VAT is probably the only way to come close to funding the federal government at its current levels of outrageous spending. Since none of the other candidates are forcefully calling Romney out on the VAT issue, I suspect an eventual Republican betrayal on establishing a VAT tax is likely.
 
As a reminder, a VAT would tax goods at ALL layers of production, from their origin as raw material to manufacture to final product.
 
Rising levels of federal deficit spending create momentum toward the VAT “solution.” Debt-addicted central governments in Europe and the United States have no intention of dealing with the true causes of the financial crisis.
 
To get to a VAT from here, all the political class needs to do is wait around for a “responsible” Republican to come around and act as a tax collector for the welfare state. My point is the Big Government people have already established the new unsustainable spending baselines.   All they need now is a gullible Republican to come in and “do something.” Paralysis and dysfunction are their friends, because it will lead to a crisis that may well result in the imposition of the VAT tax.
 
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Interestingly, the imposition of a VAT by the federal government is currently illegal and unconstitutional.
 
So, how do they implement it?
 
 
So, what does “balanced budget” mean?  To you, me, the teaparty, and normal people it means to bring spending in line with revenues.  I.e. don’t spend more than you have.
 
But once you enter the twisted mind of a politician, “balanced budget” means RAISING REVENUE to match the amount of money you WANT TO SPEND.
 
Since
a) imposition of a VAT by the federal government is now illegal and unconstitutional,
b) congress and certainly our state legislature lacks any will or spine to CUT REAL spending (not just rates of increases), and
c) it requires a constitutional amendment to pass this new tax,
there is no other conlcusion to draw than this travesty certain state legislators want to desecrate our God-inspired constitution with will lead to anything other than a new federal tax to meet spending targets the government wants to achieve.
 
Frankly, any state legislator who believes otherwise is an idiot.  (Yes, I just called you that.  Embrace it.)  A real Republican would be withholding remittance of tax receipts to the federal government, not empowering the federal government to levy yet another tax from Arizonans.
 
The fact that Republicans are behind this one is disgusting and only proves that RINO hunting should be an active and ongoing endeavor by any real American patriot.
 
Our God-inspired constitution is just fine, thank you.    Leave it alone.
 
Teaparty, y’all!
 
Filed Under: Arizona Politics, Campaigns & Elections, Constitutional Law, Debt, Federal Budget, Spending, States Rights, Taxation

Rep. Ben Quayle: Another Presidential Punt

January 12, 2012 By 1 Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 12, 2012
CONTACT: Zach Howell

WASHINGTON (DC) Congressman Ben Quayle released the following statement Thursday regarding President Obama’s request for yet another $1.2 trillion increase to the debt ceiling:

“The President’s decision to seek yet another $1.2 trillion increase to the debt limit reinforces the unfortunate trend of raising the debt ceiling while taking no action to rein in spending.

“Because of President Obama’s lack of leadership, our national debt has surpassed the size of the American economy. House Republicans have passed numerous bills that will start to get our spending under control only to be blocked by the Democrat controlled Senate and the President. It’s time for the President and Senate Democrats to join Republicans in Congress in making substantive spending cuts and meaningful reforms to our entitlement programs.”

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Filed Under: Debt, Elected Officials, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Press Release, Spending Tagged With: , , ,

It’s time to square up the state’s debt

January 10, 2012 By 3 Comments

By Nick Dranias, Goldwater Institute

Governor Jan Brewer has declared that one of her priorities in the coming session is to pay down the state’s debt. The idea, mirrored by leadership proposals in the state house and senate, is both timely and refreshingly frank.

By any straight-face test, the state has continuously violated the Arizona Constitution’s mandate that current-year expenses be funded largely on a “pay as you go” cash basis — not through debt. Now that the state anticipates as much as $650 million in surplus tax revenue, it is time to square Arizona’s fiscal policy with the state constitution.

Enabled by legal precedents that embraced fiscal gamesmanship decades ago, the state has long skirted the Arizona Constitution’s $350,000 debt limit using a variety of budget tricks. Officials have sold and leased-back buildings, used credit lines and warrants to cover huge gaps between spending and revenue, and rolled-over liabilities from one budget year into the next.

While last year’s budget was relatively gimmick-free, hundreds of millions of dollars of past fiscal gimmickry remain on the books.

An unretired debt is a tax on future generations. Our state’s founders largely banned debt to protect those voiceless future generations from taxation without representation.

Arizona’s “pay-as-you-go” constitutional policy properly imposes political accountability on current politicians for their fiscal choices. For this reason, constitutionalists, tax hawks and fiscal responsibility mavens should agree with Governor Brewer and legislative leadership: Use the surplus to retire the state’s unconstitutional debt.

Nick Dranias holds the Clarence J. and Katherine P. Duncan Chair for Constitutional Government and is director of the Joseph and Dorothy Donnelly Moller Center for Constitutional Government at the Goldwater Institute.

Learn more:

Arizona Republic: Plans for Arizona Budget Vary

Goldwater Institute: Living Debt Free: Restoring Arizona’s Commitment to its Constitutional Debt Limit

Filed Under: Arizona Politics, Debt, Economic Development, Economics, Government, Legislation, Spending, State Budget, State Economy, State Government

Washington spending: Have we learned our lesson yet?

January 5, 2012 By 6 Comments

by Nick Dranias
Goldwater Institute

Promises of reduced spending swept dozens of self-proclaimed conservatives into power during the 2010 congressional elections. What did they do? They gave President Obama the power to lift the federal debt limit, twice failed to move a Balanced Budget Amendment proposal out of the House and promised spending cuts that look increasingly illusory.

As history increasingly shows, Washington’s limitless ability to incur debt is one of the greatest errors in our Constitution. Fortunately, there is no reason to wait for Congress to propose what Thomas Jefferson called the “Missing Amendment.”

Federalist No. 43, written by James Madison, emphasizes that Article V of the U.S. Constitution empowers “State governments to originate the amendment of errors.” This means state legislatures can compel Congress to call a convention for proposing constitutional amendments when 34 of them pass “applications” requesting one.

Not surprisingly, states and citizens are increasingly recognizing that Article V was designed to tackle the problem of the federal debt.

Last session, two states — Louisiana and North Dakota — passed National Debt Relief Amendment (NDRA) applications. They request an Article V convention to require any increase in the federal debt to be approved by a majority of state legislatures. Legislators in 20 states, including Arizona State Senator Linda Gray, will sponsor the NDRA this year.

Moving the federal debt debate to state legislatures would enable states and ordinary citizens to exert far more influence than they currently have. And the logistics of complying with this amendment would require the federal government to prepare budgets, debt financing proposals, and fiscal contingency plans months in advance.

The National Debt Relief Amendment would decentralize power, establish transparency and encourage basic fiscal responsibility. But no one should hold their breath waiting for Congress to propose it. The only realistic option is to impose it from the outside, and Article V of the U.S. Constitution gives us this power.

Nick Dranias holds the Clarence J. and Katherine P. Duncan Chair for Constitutional Government and is director of the Joseph and Dorothy Donnelly Moller Center for Constitutional Government at the Goldwater Institute.

Learn More:

Goldwater Institute: Article V research resources

New York Times: Obama Waits Before Asking for Increase in Debt Limit

RestoringFreedom.org: The National Debt Relief Amendment

Filed Under: Debt, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Government Reform, Spending, State Government, States Rights

Congressman Jeff Flake: So Just How Broke Are We?

November 22, 2011 By 3 Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November22, 2011
CONTACT: Genevieve Frye Rozansky

So Just How Broke Are We?

Mesa, Arizona – Republican Congressman Jeff Flake, who represents Arizona’s Sixth District, today illustrated the size and scope of the growing national debt.

According to the American Farm Bureau Federation, the average cost of this year’s Thanksgiving Day dinner for 10 people will be $49.20, or $4.92 per person. The surveyed shopping list includes quantities of turkey, bread stuffing, sweet potatoes, rolls with butter, peas, cranberries, a relish tray of carrots and celery, pumpkin pie with whipped cream, and beverages of coffee and milk sufficient to serve a family of 10.

The U.S. is so broke that based on the estimated cost per person of this year’s Thanksgiving dinner, our outlandish debt of $15 trillion could feed approximately 3.05 trillion people. That’s more than 448 times the entire world’s population.

“Congress needs to talk turkey about our nation’s fiscal woes – we can’t keep riding the gravy train,” said Flake.

Along with Senators McCain and Rubio, Congressman Flake introduced H.R. 634, the Debt Buy-Down Act, which allows taxpayers to designate up to 10 percent of their federal income tax liability to reduce the national debt. The bill then requires Congress to reduce federal spending by that amount. More information on the Debt Buy-Down Act can be found here.

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Filed Under: Debt, Elected Officials, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Holiday, Press Release, Spending, Taxation Tagged With: ,

Gosar’s Statement on Failure of Supercommittee: America is Disappointed and Frustrated

November 22, 2011 By 1 Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 22, 2011
CONTACT: Apryl Marie Fogel

Gosar’s Statement on Failure of Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction: America is Disappointed and Frustrated

WASHINGTON, DC –U.S. Congressman Paul Gosar, DDS (AZ-01) released the following statement today upon news that the 12 person Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction was unable to successfully present Congress with a plan to reduce $1.2 trillion over the next decade.

“As we go into the holiday season, hardworking Americans are hoping that the New Year will bring new opportunities and new success for our nation’s economy.

As an outsider sent to Washington to bring a new perspective, I am frustrated that politics as usual has gotten in the way of such a solution being offered. Too many in the federal government have lost sight of the real problem. The problem is the continued business as usual mentality, and many in positions of power in the federal government are to blame.

The answers to our problems are not more government picking of winners and losers, more government bureaucracy, or more government spending.    The solution requires government to get out of the way of Main Street America and to tighten its own belt.

I’ve repeatedly said that tough decisions would have to be made and meaningful reforms brought to the table to solve our current spending crisis.  I am disappointed that this group was not able to meet this challenge.

Despite today’s setback for our country, I remain as committed as ever to fighting the Washington machine and advocating on behalf of my constituents for real, common-sense solutions that will restore fiscal sanity and ensure prosperity for future generations.

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Filed Under: Debt, Elected Officials, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Press Release, Spending, Taxation Tagged With: , ,

Senator John McCain on Fox & Friends

November 22, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Senator John McCain on with Fox & Friends discussing the failure of the supercommittee

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Filed Under: Debt, Elected Officials, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Media, Spending, Taxation Tagged With: ,

COINS? NO WAY!!

October 14, 2011 By 14 Comments

Typically, legislation presented by our fine Congressman David Schweikert (R-AZ) gathers almost instantaneous praise from his conservative supporters.

However, he has put his reputation as an expert “numbers guy” in Washington at risk by introducing the Currency Optimization, Innovation and National Savings Act, or COINS.

The COINS legislation calls for an end of $1 paper bill production in order to increase the circulation of a $1 coin. Schweikert touts this as an investment that will save big bucks for the government in a few decades, But this just isn’t the case. It will not save money. The Congressman failed to mention that the government would actually lose money during the first four years of implementation, and that if Americans reject the $1 coin (as they have before- think Susan B. Anthony, Sacagawea, etc.), those losses will likely never be regained.

There has been a $1 presidential coin in circulation for several years, and it has been rejected by the American people so much so that there is an estimated $1 billion worth of them sitting in the Federal Reserve’s vaults.

In addition to Schweikert’s efforts, talk about COINS has been circulating within Congress’ new Super Committee as a potential money saver for the federal government. For now, the conversations about $1 coins are rudimentary; hopefully it will stay this way.

It is painful to imagine the Super Committee spending any time debating $1bills vs. $1 coins. And it would be disappointing if the organization charged with immediate deficit reduction for the country would give this serious consideration. The fact is coins are not a money saver.

The American people have made it clear time and time again how strongly they feel against the implementation of $1 coins. Congressman Schweikert and The Super Committee should take note.

Congressman Schweikert – we appreciate the effort, but this proposal is a stinker.

Filed Under: Debt, Federal Budget, Federal Government

Cut Spending Now! October 8th AFP Tour Stop in Prescott Valley

October 4, 2011 By 4 Comments

Tell Washington to Cut Spending Now!

Americans have tightened their belts, and so should Washington, DC!

Dear Arizona Taxpayer,

For decades, Washington has continued to borrow and spend at a pace that is not sustainable. Washington is borrowing nearly 40 cents of every dollar we spend and the US debt is now the same size as our entire economy.

You and I understand that our families could not survive borrowing at the same rate, but Washington continues to use the same budgeting gimmicks and accounting tricks to hide our financial crisis.

That’s why Americans for Prosperity is pleased to announce our Cut Spending Now! Tour, which will be rolling through Prescott Valley, Arizona on Saturday, October 8, at the northwest corner of Highways 69 and 169. REGISTER TODAY for this FREE event!

Here are the event details:

Who: Hard-working, concerned citizens such as YOURSELF!
What: Cut Spending Now Tour
Where: Intersection of Highways 69 and 169, northwest corner, Prescott Valley/Dewey.
When: Saturday, October 8, from 1:00 to 2:00 pm
Why: To stand up to politicians and tell them to Cut Spending Now!
How: REGISTER HERE

If you cannot make it to the event, please click here and sign our Cut Spending Now! petition. And be sure to take our quick poll on how to solve America’s $150 trillion unfunded government liability crisis.

We cannot continue to spend at this rate. Now is the time for Washington to tighten its belt and make the same tough choices that American families and businesses have made for decades. We must fight to ensure that Washington puts America first and Cuts Spending Now!

We hope you will join us in this fight, and we’ll see you on the road! And don’t forget to register today!

Also: be sure to read the new paper from the national policy staff at Americans for Prosperity. The Congressional Super Committee needs to come up with $1.5 trillion in cuts in the wake of the debt-ceiling deal. But that’s pretty weak (not very “super” in the big scheme of things), so AFP has produced a recommendation for over $5 trillion in spending cuts:

http://www.americansforprosperity.org/100311-afp-releases-super-committee-recommendations

For Liberty,

Tom Jenney

Filed Under: Debt, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Special Event, Spending, Taxation Tagged With:

Doug Ducey Statement On Increasing Taxes on Municipal Bond Investments

September 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 28, 2011
CONTACT: Kevin Donnellan

PHOENIX – “The Arizona State Treasurer’s Office manages $3.3 billion of local government tax dollars for more than 150 Arizona cities, towns, counties and special taxing districts. Higher taxes for municipal bonds during this artificially created low interest rate environment will increase the cost of financing for municipalities. Those costs will ultimately be passed along to city, county and state taxpayers.

“The goal for our economy should be long-term, sustainable job creation, not increases in short-term revenues. We need real reforms and real reductions in spending, not tax increases that will only continue to fund our already bloated and out-of-control federal government.

“President Obama rolled the dice in 2009 with a $862 billion stimulus package that failed to prevent unemployment from rising over 8.0 percent. Today, Arizona is faced with 9.3 percent unemployment and a national rate of 9.1 percent. In the business world we call that a negative return on investment. The President now sees it as an opportunity to double-down with another $447 billion stimulus gimmick.

“Raising taxes on municipal bond investment will not help create jobs. The President’s proposal will bring more volatility into the markets and take more money out of the private sector; neither of which will have a positive return for Arizona or our national economy.”

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Filed Under: Debt, Economics, Elected Officials, Press Release, Spending, State Budget, State Economy, State Government Tagged With:

Rep. David Schweikert talks Stimulus and the Fed with Larry Kudlow

September 21, 2011 By 1 Comment

Rep. Schweikert talked about more stimulus and the Federal Reserve on CNBC with Larry Kudlow. Here is the video from that appearance:

YouTube Preview Image
Filed Under: Debt, Elected Officials, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Legislation, Media, Spending Tagged With: , ,

Rep. Schweikert Votes Against Short-Term Continuing Resolution

September 21, 2011 By Leave a Comment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 21, 2011
CONTACT: Rachel Semmel

Washington, D.C. – Rep. David Schweikert (R-AZ) issued the following statement today after voting against a short-term continuing resolution funding the federal government through November 15, 2011:

“Earlier this year, the House passed a budget that took significant steps toward budget discipline and cut spending to sustainable levels. I supported this budget then, and I do now. This stop-gap measure violates the House-passed budget by falling $24 billion short in cuts originally promised.

 “The American people do not have the luxury of violating their family budgets when they fail to make tough choices, and neither should Washington.

 “We have a duty to be unwavering in our commitment to get Washington back on the right track and to protect the taxpayer dollar.

 “I encourage my colleagues in the Senate to pass a budget immediately. After 876 days, the political pandering needs to stop. It is time to be honest about the numbers.”

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Filed Under: Debt, Elected Officials, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Press Release, Spending Tagged With: ,

Rep Flake: ‘It’s time to tell members of Congress to do their ‘Jobs’’

August 30, 2011 By 21 Comments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 30, 2011
CONTACT: Genevieve Frye Rozansky

So Just How Broke Are We? 

Mesa, Arizona – Republican Congressman Jeff Flake, who represents Arizona’s Sixth District, today illustrated the size and scope of the growing national debt.

Last week, Apple, Inc. CEO Steve Jobs resigned his position at the helm of the second most valuable company in the world, according to Newsweek.

In the four years since its debut, Apple has sold more than 100 million iPhones – one of the flagship Apple products Jobs helped to shepherd from infancy to success. At about $200 each, the U.S. is so broke that our $14.4 trillion debt could buy 72 billion iPhones.

“It’s time to tell members of Congress to do their ‘Jobs’ and find ways to start eliminating our debt now,” said Flake.

Along with Senators McCain and Rubio, Congressman Flake introduced H.R. 634, the Debt Buy-Down Act, which allows taxpayers to designate up to 10 percent of their federal income tax liability to reduce the national debt. The bill then requires Congress to reduce federal spending by that amount. More information on the Debt Buy-Down Act can be found here.

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Filed Under: Debt, Elected Officials, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Press Release, Spending Tagged With: , ,

Senator Jon Kyl: Stemming the Tide of Red Ink

August 29, 2011 By 3 Comments

By Senator Jon Kyl

On August 22, Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero announced that Spain would be the latest European country to adopt strict limits on budget deficits and debt. Zapatero, leader of Spain’s Socialist Party, quickly secured backing for the proposal from the opposition conservative People’s Party, which means the budget limits will likely pass through Spain’s parliament by a huge bipartisan margin.

Spain’s move comes in the wake of a wider European movement towards greater fiscal restraint spawned by Germany. In 2009, with a similar wide coalition of conservatives and leftists, the Germans passed the so-called “debt brake”– a constitutional amendment that prohibits a deficit greater than 0.35 percent of GDP (to put this in perspective, our deficit as a percentage of GDP has grown to nearly 25 times as large under President Obama).

Other European economies are now following Germany’s example. France and Italy, for instance, have also proposed similar ideas in recent weeks. With Greece just a short train ride away, these countries now understand the dangers of runaway deficits and debt.

It is about time we enacted something similar here in the United States. For free-spending Europe to be more aggressive on fiscal responsibility than us says less about how far Europe has come than how far we’ve fallen. Indeed, our fiscal position has become very dire. The federal government is now borrowing more than 40 cents of every dollar it spends. Our $14.6 trillion debt will continue to grow at a quickening pace and threaten our economy, our jobs, and the American way of life itself – unless we do something now to stop it.

I personally favor a mechanism to cap spending at a set percentage of GDP. Federal spending today is about 24 percent of GDP, well over the historical average and far more than we can afford as a nation. A more responsible level would be 18 percent. But there are other ways to get at this problem. For instance, as part of the legislation passed in early August to end the impasse over the debt ceiling, Republicans insisted on including a provision that will force Congress to vote on a balanced budget amendment by the end of the year. Congress should support it so that the states, through their legislatures, could vote on it.

In the 1990s, the balanced budget amendment came within one vote of the two-thirds margin necessary for passage. This year, Republicans in the Senate are unanimous in support of this common-sense idea, and some Democrats may support it as well.

Recent polling shows support for a federal balanced budget amendment hovering around 75 percent. It’s hard to think of another major policy issue with such broad support across political dividing lines.

At the same time, it’s unfortunate we even need such an amendment. Ideally, elected leaders should simply govern responsibly by making government live within its means. Yet, realistically, we know that will not always be the case.

To be sure, digging out of this fiscal crisis will be difficult – we cannot solve this with one cut, one bill, or even a constitutional amendment. It will take dedication and years of fiscal discipline, but we can get there.

Our European allies are showing us that traditional adversaries on the left and right can come together to enact sensible limits on deficits and debt. While every country will take its own way forward, some with better ideas than others, here in the U.S. it’s past time for us to act in a bipartisan way.

Sen. Jon Kyl is the Senate Republican Whip and serves on the Senate Finance and Judiciary committees. Visit his website at www.kyl.senate.gov or his YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/senjonkyl.

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Filed Under: Debt, Elected Officials, Federal Budget, Federal Government, Foreign Policy, Guest Opinion, Spending Tagged With: , ,
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