A key component of Tim Pawlenty's "compromise" to revive funding for the Central Corridor involves crippling the ability of our cities to deliver services. Pawlenty wants to impose a cap on local government property taxes, thereby forcing them to cut services.
The irony here is that it was Pawlenty himself who raised our property taxes by slashing Local Government Aid last time he needed funding to cover a deficit without raising taxes. The chart below shows things pretty clearly, I think:
This is such a typical move for Pawlenty and other conservative crazies just like him. First, you raid a source of funding that should never be used to balance a budget. Then, you blame the former recipient of that source for being "fiscally irresponsible." Then, to cover up your own irresponsibility, you punish the people you screwed in the first place.
Now, he wants to raid the Health Access Fund. Maybe in a few years, he'll be punishing people who needed that funding. I can imagine it now: "They should have exercised more."
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[Chart data source: MN State Auditor]
The irony here is that it was Pawlenty himself who raised our property taxes by slashing Local Government Aid last time he needed funding to cover a deficit without raising taxes. The chart below shows things pretty clearly, I think:
This is such a typical move for Pawlenty and other conservative crazies just like him. First, you raid a source of funding that should never be used to balance a budget. Then, you blame the former recipient of that source for being "fiscally irresponsible." Then, to cover up your own irresponsibility, you punish the people you screwed in the first place.
Now, he wants to raid the Health Access Fund. Maybe in a few years, he'll be punishing people who needed that funding. I can imagine it now: "They should have exercised more."
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[Chart data source: MN State Auditor]
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