[Peace-discuss] Interesting AP article published in N-G

[David Green]

OKLAHOMA’S GOVERNMENT

GOP confronts another failed tax experiment

By SEAN MURPHY

Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY — When the GOP took full control of Oklahoma government after
the 2010 election, lawmakers set out to make it a model of Republican
principles, with lower taxes, lighter regulation and a raft of
business-friendly reforms.

Conservatives passed all of it, setting in motion a grand experiment. Now
it’s time for another big election, but instead of campaigning on eight
years of achievements, Republicans are confronting chaos and crisis. Agency
budgets that were cut during the Great Recession have been slashed even
deeper. Rural hospitals are closing, and teachers are considering a
statewide strike over low wages.

“I’m not scared to say it, because I love Oklahoma, and we are dying,” said
Republican state Rep. Leslie Osborn. “I truly believe the situation is
dire.”

Oklahoma’s woes offer the ultimate cautionary tale for other states
considering trickle-down economic reforms. The outlook is so grim that some
Republicans are willing to consider the ultimate heresy: raising taxes to
fund education and health care, an idea that was once the exclusive
province of Democrats.

“Without new recurring revenue, we can’t fix these problems,” said Osborn,
who was ousted as chairwoman of the powerful House Appropriations and
Budget committee for her outspoken support of tax increases.

The crisis has also placed the oil and gas industry, a sacred cow in
Oklahoma, in an awkward spot since it sought the huge tax cut that is one
of the biggest factors in the budget mess.

Gov. Mary Fallin and GOP leaders have been unable to reverse course because
of a constitutional quirk that says any tax increase needs a threefourth’s
majority vote of the Legislature. Despite broad GOP support for tax hikes,
a small number of fiercely anti-tax Republicans have joined with the
minority Democrats to derail attempts to raise revenue. Democrats complain
that most of the tax plans unfairly target the poor.

While state leaders bicker over how it went wrong and what to do about it,
a half-dozen Republicans are jockeying to succeed Fallin, who cannot seek
reelection because of term limits.

Although the candidates represent different wings of the party, all of them
agree about the depth of the problem. And while none of them want to use
the word “tax,” several talk about replacing some of the revenue that has
been cut in recent years. That replacement money could scarcely come from
any other source except taxes.

The only GOP candidate for governor who openly advocates for a tax hike is
Auditor and Inspector Gary Jones, an accountant and former chairman of the
state Republican Party. He’s been particularly critical of the
Legislature’s decision to make permanent a generous tax incentive on new
oil and gas production. Fallin signed that bill just before the price of
oil plummeted in 2014. The price drop dealt another major blow to the
energy-dependent economy.

The drilling industry now pays an effective tax rate in Oklahoma that is
far lower than in any other state, a factor cited by the teachers
threatening a strike.

“We’ve got to face the truth,” Jones said. “We need somebody who’s willing
to tell the truth about how we got here, where we’re at and has a plan to
get out.”

Since 2009, more than two dozen state agencies have seen their budgets
slashed by more than 30 percent. The cuts have been especially painful in
public schools, where funding has dipped since 2015, even though enrollment
has climbed by about 10,000 students statewide.
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