Initiative 960 is not just poorly conceived and terminally misguided. It's an attempt to pretty much paralyze state government by putting representative democracy in a straitjacket.
That's why the League of Women Voters, AARP, teachers, nurses, police, firefighters, children's advocates, environmental and community groups, even key business leaders -- more than 100 organizations in all -- oppose I-960.
Instead of focusing on truly pressing public needs like affordable housing, ending homelessness, providing a quality education for every child, and figuring out how to make health and long-term care affordable as baby boomers enter their senior years, I-960 would require the entire legislature to vote on every single fee increase no matter how small: even a nickel more for a UW library card.
No business could thrive if the Board of Directors had to vote on every minor increase in spending. State government is no different in that respect.
If I-960 passes, routine budgeting decisions about meeting the basic needs of Washingtonians would require a two-thirds legislative majority to pass. It would also require new public votes in many cases. That might not seem so onerous, until you delve deeper. A small minority of legislators could hold up needed spending indefinitely. The new public votes are non-binding. They would not change any policy, but are merely advisory. Holding these non-binding votes would cost taxpayers up to $1.8 million a year, according to the nonpartisan Washington State Office of Financial Management. Costs could be even higher, depending on the number of ballots required.
I-960 would actually prohibit the detailed pro and con arguments that Washington voters expect to see in the voters' pamphlet for these advisory ballots. Instead, it would permit just 13 words to explain why any given change in revenue is needed. It would label every change in revenue a "tax increase" -- regardless of whether or not anyone would actually pay more in taxes. The Washington Research Council, generally a conservative group, asserts that in this case, the new public votes required by I-960 are "designed more to intimidate legislators" than to engage the public.
Other states have tried to micromanage the fiscal decisions of their legislators. Overly restrictive provisions enacted in Colorado meant the state dropped from 35th in the nation in education spending to 49th. Immunization rates for children fell to dead last among all states, and residents had to wait longer for help from emergency medical services. Is that really where Washington wants to go?
The restrictions and red tape made it so difficult for Colorado legislators to fund vital services and address key priorities that their Republican governor put up a ballot measure to suspend the restrictions, and voters approved it by a wide margin.
I-960's true aim is to make it difficult, if not downright impossible, to gain agreement on funding for vital public programs. Innovative investments like the Puget Sound Partnership and Education Legacy Trust Fund would probably not have been funded if I-960's rigid rules and requirements were in place.
The additional hurdles required by I-960 could only be set aside in the event of a natural disaster, making it difficult for the legislature to respond quickly to urgent public needs during an economic recession, bridge collapse, pandemic flu, or even terrorist attack.
I-960 is about micromanagement, turning every increase in revenue into a partisan fight over "tax increases," meaningless, costly public votes based on extraordinarily limited and biased information and a desire to chill (or freeze) legislators' ability to act on our most basic and pressing needs.
That's why recent editorials have used the terms "straitjacket" and "handcuff" to describe I-960's intended effect on state government.
Representative government may not be perfect, but none of the many, murky provisions of I-960 would do anything to improve it. Making it nearly impossible for our elected representatives to do their jobs is no way to improve accountability. In fact, it is a recipe for disaster. Vote No on I-960. Christy Margelli and Juan Martinez are the Interim Co-Directors of the Washington Tax Fairness Coalition, a group of over 75 organizations statewide working together to promote real accountability, stability and fairness in our state's tax system. Find out more online at: http://www.WATaxFairness.org