Consistency

Below is a column I wrote for a past GrassRoots report:

Consistency.

If we could achieve this one word in Utah politics, it would be a great day for this state.

Opponents of H.B. 148 which introduced educational vouchers to the state lamented the cost. Yet 30 of the 48 House and Senate members who voted against vouchers had no problem giving $15 million of the citizen’s money to build a soccer stadium.

If sending every dollar possible to educate our children is the real reason to oppose vouchers why is the $15 million soccer stadium an exception?

If it is so important that every possible dollar be spent on classroom spending, why did 34 of the 37 representatives who voted against vouchers oppose insuring more money was funneled into the classroom? H.B. 193 would have required that 65% of school funding be spent on instruction. The bill was defeated in the House 24-49-2.

One would think that if the state was not spending enough money to teach its children then we would be attempting to streamline our system. Yet S.B 49, which creates extended day kindergarten in the state, passed overwhelmingly. The bill carries a $30 million price tag for the first year.

Many of our politicians proclaim the pro-life mantle and talk about the importance of protecting the unborn. H.B. 235 would have been a test case to challenge Roe v. Wade which legalized abortion. In a year of record spending increases, it was decided that the unborn was not as high a priority as a soccer stadium for a millionaire.

Being consistent when it comes to principals is not easy. This year H.B. 84 which created the Traumatic Brain Injury Fund passed both chambers by large margins. The money comes from increased fines for those convicted of DUI’s. Certainly those who commit this crime should be punished, but is creating another government program the way to go? What happens if we are ever able to rid the society of drunk driving, how will this continue to be funded? For those who decry socialized medicine, isn’t such a bill a step in the direction of a government run system?

This year it became more difficult to purchase cough and cold medicines. Yet nothing was done to curb the attack on our borders of illegal immigration.

Of course, the lack of consistency is not only absent in our state politics. On a national level, conservatives are falling all over themselves to support candidates who only recently were pro-abortion and pro-gay rights.

Our lack of consistency will eventually hurt this state. Currently our economy is growing and unemployment is very low. Yet government has grown larger than the rate of inflation and according to the Utah Taxpayers Association has grown on average 9% over the past two years.

What will happen to this state when the economic good times end? It may not be a popular notion but every Economics 101 class in college teaches of economic cycles with times of growth such as we are in now, but times of correction when the economy does not fair as well.

When the economy goes bad, as it inevitably will, who will pay for the increased state spending? How will we fund full day kindergarten or a soccer stadium and the myriad of other programs which have been recently implemented?

While our lawmakers should be praised for recent tax cuts, ultimately the lack of fiscal restraint will ultimately lead to an increased tax burden. Because when faced with cutting spending or raising taxes, unfortunately our elected officials have been remarkably consistent. Please hold onto your wallets. That will be the price we will pay for inconsistency in our state government.