Prosperity for Pennsylvanians
I have co-authored a ten point Prosperity for Pennsylvanians plan which
includes among others, Tax and Expenditure Limitation, Property Tax
Reform, Tax Fairness and Equality, Fiscal Responsibility and Integrity
of Elections proposals. The Legislature must perform strict
oversight of spending programs in order to reduce the tax burden on
Pennsylvanians to the absolute minimum necessary for the State to
perform its constitutionally enumerated functions. These same
principles must be advanced to the federal level. Only then can
we unleash the full potential of the citizens of Pennsylvania to earn
the prosperity they justly deserve.
Introduction
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has been at the forefront of liberty and prosperity throughout its history.
As the birthplace of Independence for our great nation, Pennsylvania
provided the economic might to secure freedom from the British. Most of
the Commonwealth was part of a vast frontier and Pennsylvanians tamed
it with their imagination, ingenuity and work ethic. The incentive was
obvious - personal success in providing the means to survive and
prosper.
Some eight decades later, Pennsylvanians fought at Gettysburg to save
the Union from tearing itself apart. In another few years,
Pennsylvanians would become the industrial leaders of the free world -
a position we enjoyed until not so long ago.
Industrial and economic prosperity allowed Pennsylvanians to develop
and enjoy effective educational institutions, world-class health care
systems, reliable infrastructure and virtually unlimited ways to
improve their lives.
But things have changed in Pennsylvania.
We are losing our industries at an alarming rate, along with the
meaningful jobs they provide. Of the few new jobs that are created,
many are unsuitable for supporting a family. Our schools are struggling
under mandates from above. Our health care system is in crisis. Our
infrastructure is crumbling. Our way of life is deteriorating.
While elected officials continuously raise taxes and borrow even more
to institute and expand grandiose programs and policies bearing
questionable results, working Pennsylvanians and their families are
being crushed by the burden. There is no end in sight for this trend
unless Pennsylvanians demand one - by refusing to allow their
government to travel one more mile down this particular road.
Irresponsible governmental promises of the past are squeezing the life
out of Pennsylvanians today. Irresponsible promises by present elected
officials threaten to do worse for our children tomorrow.
Our problems haven't occurred overnight and they cannot be fully
corrected immediately, but we must draw the line and take bold steps to
restore Prosperity for Pennsylvanians. The alternative - continuing
denial and inaction - would deal a much more devastating blow to our
Commonwealth.
Ten Steps to Prosperity
1. Tax and Expenditure Limitation
The General Assembly must immediately move to enact a Tax and
Expenditure Limitation (TEL) that includes immediate five-year freezes
on any overall tax increases, government borrowing and state
expenditure increases. Such a TEL must also include provisions that all
future state and local appropriations, funding packages and tax changes
require passage by two-thirds legislative or administrative majority
and that all state and local tax method and rate changes require
approval by two-thirds majority in a voter referendum.
Pennsylvania
General Fund spending has increased by 773% since 1971-72. Total state
operating expenditures have increased by 1089% during the same period.
This has been accomplished by Republican and Democratic administrations
alike, and neither party seems committed to reversing the trend. Income
for the average working Pennsylvanian has increased to keep pace with
rising prices since 1971, however, any real gains in income beyond
inflation are negligible. Adjusted for inflation, wages in Pennsylvania
have remained relatively flat while the size and scope of state
government has roughly doubled.
Fourteen states with TELs in effect
outperformed Pennsylvania in overall employment growth by 107.4%
between 1995 and 2003 and in Gross State Product by 56.9% between 1995
and 2001. Both figures for Pennsylvania also fall below national
averages. The Commonwealth has also lagged behind in retaining
opportunities at home for graduates. Between 1970 and 2001,
Pennsylvania's working age population grew by just 2.5% while the
national growth rate was 18%.
Increasing the size and scope of the
government is simply not a viable answer for Pennsylvanians, who are
already saddled with taxation on nearly every human activity. Further
overall tax increases and borrowing will only insure similar or worse
results for future generations. Adopting a TEL as soon as possible will
finally rein in the excesses of government finance and assure that such
policies have the approval of the unofficial fourth, but most
important, branch of government - the people themselves.
Hard working
Pennsylvanians have been increasingly making do with less - and it's
time for government to follow suit, rationally consider its priorities
and take reasonable actions to pursue those goals.
2. Property Tax Reform
The General Assembly must eliminate property taxes by school
districts
and set strict limits on those imposed by local governments through the
institution of tuition, sales and excise tax alternatives. By
removing school district monopolies and allowing public schools to
charge tuition, the free market forces will enable schools to operate
in the "thorough and efficient" manner prescribed by the State
Constitution.
Studies have shown that reducing Pennsylvania's sales tax rate and
applying it to all goods and services could provide enough revenue to
wipe out property taxes entirely. A sales tax initiative, being a
consumption tax, would insure that governments base their programs and
policies on the success they have in supporting local economies. As a
voluntary tax on discretionary expenditures, Pennsylvanians would once
again have a real incentive to save their earnings for the future. Like
any other governmental policy in a society of equal individuals, there
can be no exceptions allowed for this initiative. Although some
opponents may claim that a sales tax replacement plan is regressive and
unfair, any tax on property is even worse. The privately held property
of Pennsylvanians is their last bastion of escape from the whims and
mandates of government. Property taxes insinuate that authorities hold
ownership of all property and are merely renting it to Pennsylvanians.
3. Tax Fairness and Equality
The General Assembly must immediately repeal all economic development
funding and eliminate tax incentive plans created under the guise of
attracting new business. Pennsylvania is consistently near the top of
the list of states in spending for economic development, yet is just as
often near the bottom of the list for results expected from such
spending.
Tax breaks for new businesses unfairly pass the costs of any
necessary infrastructure to established businesses and individuals -
and there is no guarantee these same businesses will not leave
Pennsylvania as soon as a tax incentive is offered elsewhere, which is
often the case. Naturally growing existing entities and privately
funded new businesses are our best resource for meaningful new jobs and
only fair and equal treatment of these entities will serve this need.
We must strive to impress upon prospective new businesses the need to
be a full partner in our communities. The simple truth is that
governments cannot create meaningful private sector jobs. Only private
entities can perform this task - entities motivated by profit. When
such entities see an opportunity to profit by creating jobs, they
certainly will. Using public funds to make any particular situation
more attractive only masks existing shortfalls in that situation -
otherwise, the jobs would already exist.
4. Litigation Reform
The General Assembly must immediately set to the task of eliminating -
or establishing caps on - non-economic damages in all lawsuits, both
medical and non-medical. While non-economic claims such as pain and
suffering may be arguable, there is no possible way to quantify them in
dollar values. Eliminating or capping such claims, while not the only
solution for our health care crisis, will certainly have an impact on
reversing some of the trends that have made affordable health care
unavailable for many Pennsylvanians. The General Assembly should also
closely examine the possibilities of modifying our civil courts to
bring about a 'loser pays' system where frivolous and questionable
lawsuits will be discouraged. We must take every step available to
prevent our courts from being viewed as a potential lottery jackpot.
5. Affordable Health Care
The General Assembly must immediately allow and encourage health
insurance companies to make policies more affordable by repealing state
mandates for coverage of any particular treatment and by removing any
roadblocks which prevent small businesses from banding together to form
buying groups. As privately owned entities, insurance companies should
be allowed to determine their own policies regarding which treatments
to cover. The natural forces of a free and fair market will ultimately
determine the effectiveness of those policies. Small businesses are the
backbone of any robust economy and should be allowed the same savings
opportunities as larger corporations for employee health care plans.
6.
Protecting the Environment
The General Assembly must repeal current vehicle emissions testing
programs that punish working families for the sins of big business.
Pennsylvania's current emissions testing procedures include stringent
testing for the newest of family vehicles - the least likely polluters
- while large trucks and other diesels aren't tested at all. Ensuring clean air for all Pennsylvanians is a
desirable outcome, but our current testing practices are patently
unfair to the working family. We must develop testing methods that are
fair - such as a specific measurement of emitted particulates - and are
applicable to all vehicles.
We can also take steps to ensure the polluters are held
resopnsible for all expenses of cleanup and recovery from the damage
they cause. Hard working Pennsylvanians currently foot the bill
for corporations which pollute our soil, air and water, then leave.
7.
Farmland Preservation
The General Assembly must immediately take steps to revitalize
our
cities and towns and preserve our open spaces through passive
action. Such actions would include careful review of all plans to
expand any existing
roads or build new highways. This would naturally increase demand
for
privately funded, energy efficient mass transportation systems that
would use Pennsylvania's existing populated areas as hubs.
We must also end the
Department of Agriculture's Farm Preservation Program.
Instead of
rewarding farmers for threatening to sell their land for new
development, state and local governments should fairly determine the
future costs of providing municipal services to new developments and
assess appropriate up-front fees to developers. This type of
passive
action by the state, in coordination with local efforts, will naturally
make our cities more attractive to developers, businesses and the
individuals they employ.
8.
Fiscal Responsibility
The General Assembly must put an immediate end to slush funds for
elected officials, commonly known as "Walking Around Money," or WAMs.
These WAMs are commonly used by Senators and Representatives to reward
campaign supporters and prospective contributors. Using taxpayer
dollars in such a way rewards a select few at the expense of all
working Pennsylvanians. Allowing any state tax dollars to be spent on
programs not legislated through a clear mandate of the people only
opens the door for corruption, palm-greasing and cronyism.
The General Assembly must also begin a comprehensive review of
all State spending, eliminating or reforming any program which does not
accomplish its purpose in a cost efficient manner.
9.
Public Accountability
The General Assembly must immediately take steps to open its doors to
public accountability and provide the people with a full understanding
of the issues before it. Such actions would include: (a) Publishing an
easy-to-read summary of all issues scheduled for consideration at least
two weeks in advance in order that constituents may have an opportunity
to review and provide comment on any legislation to their Senator
and/or Representative. (b) Ending the ability to attach non-related
amendments or riders to any legislation it considers. All matters
before the General Assembly should be single-issue bills. Every issue
should come before the Legislature on its own merit. Without
non-related attachments, Senators and Representatives will be less
pressured into voting for sound policy with questionable amendments -
or bad policy with favorite pork projects attached. (c) Devising and
implementing a plan to publish individualized legislative voting
records via the Internet. As the technology to perform this task
already exists, there can be only one reason why it hasn't already been
accomplished - our legislators simply don't want their voting records
easily known.
Following the rules. Legislators found breaking any
internal rule must be sanctioned for violating the public trust. As
representatives of the people, elected officials must uphold the
highest standard of ethics while serving their constituencies.
10. Integrity of Elections
The General Assembly must strive to adopt a nationwide Primary election
day, grant equal ballot access rules for all. They must require a
certifiable record of all votes cast in elections. The General Assembly
should also: (a) Work with other states to adopt a unified poll schedule
for national elections where no region's polls are opened or closed
before another's. (b) Declare both Primary Election Day and General
Election Day a holiday to encourage the participation of all
Pennsylvanians. (c) Move to cease placing referenda on the Primary ballot
where minor party and independent voters have no other reasons to cast
a vote. (d) Repeal the exception to our Do Not Call list rules for
political organizations. Such exceptions are patently unfair for a
government bound to a Constitution that demands fair and equal
treatment in all matters.
Summary
By following these simple steps, our state government will naturally
become more streamlined and effective at performing its duties fairly
and equally for all Pennsylvanians as dictated by our Constitution.
Some opponents may say things just aren't this simple. They will say
this because they personally benefit from the excesses of our current
system and have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo. Just
as the powers of government can only be assigned through a mandate of
the people, the finances of government must be in direct correlation to
the ability of the governed to prosper individually.
With an
understanding that Big Government is not always the best solution - and
in fact usually only compounds our problems by increasing the burden
for working Pennsylvanians - we can once again allow prosperity to
spread across the Commonwealth. Such prosperity is a prerequisite for
true progress - fulfilling the desire of every Pennsylvanian to employ
their imagination, ingenuity and work ethic to improve their quality of
life.
We cannot wait for current elected officials to enact these
changes. Time and time again they have demonstrated their inability to
put a halt to government growth and spending. They will continue to do
so unless we stop them. We can accomplish this together.
This is your district.
This is your future
This is your campaign.
The time is now.
Some research provided by The Commonwealth Foundation.
If you can help with my campaign, would like any further information, please:
E-mail Me - Ray Ondrusek - or call (717)866-4967
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