Arizona Budget Update

With less than a week left before the state budget is due, Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer remains insistent upon her desired $3 billion, 17.8% sales tax increase. Brewer's stubborness continues despite the fact that the majority in the legislature has not only made clear that they will not increase taxes during the current recession, they have already passed a budget that does not include tax increases.

In the video below, Speaker Kirk Adams explains why just increasing taxes is not responsible governance and that adjusting spending so that the state lives within it's means is the only path to recovery. To sum up Adams' argument - it's the spending, stupid. Adams explains that total goverment spending in Arizona has grown by more than 53% in just the last 5 years. In fact, in 2006 alone state spending increase by a wreckless 20%.  Adams' message can be viewed below in it's in entirety.

Clearly there is much fat to be cut from the state budget and tax increases are not necessary, despite the claims coming out of the Governor's communication department and the mainstream media. Not only can the state rectify it's overspending problem without raising taxes, as Bryon Schlomach of the Goldwater Institute pointed out today, hiking taxes will only exacerbate the state's economic doldrums. Schlomach points out the following:

....the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco recently published an article summarizing research on economic multipliers. It turns out that a dollar of government spending results in 70 cents of job-creating activity after two years. A dollar in tax cuts results in $1.30 to $3 of job-creating activity after two years. Put another way, a $1 cut in spending cuts job-creating activity by 70 cents. A $1 increase in taxes cuts job-creating activity by as much as $3.

CLICK HERE NOW to contact your Arizona legislator and encourage them to stand firm in opposition to the Brewer-Coughlin tax hike.

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