Slowing Down AZ’s Budget Rollercoaster

Pearce introduces Spending Limit Referendum Bill, HCR 2038

The Governor and her Big Spender allies in the Legislature have spent the state government into another deficit crisis. Now, some of the Big Spenders are using the deficit as an excuse to justify increased property taxes next year.

Arizona’s budget problems really got out of control in FY 2006 and FY 2007, when the size of state government as a portion of the state economy exceeded 6.5 percent—levels of spending not seen since the early 1990s. Spending as a portion of the economy is down a little this year, but the Governor and the Big Spenders will soon push it even higher.

Today, Rep. Russell Pearce (Republican, District 18, Mesa) introduced HCR 2038, a referendum bill that would give voters in November an opportunity to freeze the size of state government at 6.4 percent of state personal income. That would keep state government from taking a larger and larger piece of the state economy.

The 6.4 percent bill is a fiscally moderate proposal: It allows state government to grow, but only as fast as the state economy. If a Legislator believes that government should get larger as a portion of the economy, he or she is a Big Spender, not a fiscal moderate.

Please take a moment to send a note to say thanks to Rep. Pearce at rpearce@azleg.gov, and to the legislators in your district who signed on as co-sponsors of HCR 2038:

Rep. Mark Anderson (R-18, Mesa), manderson@azleg.gov

Rep. Ray Barnes (R-7, Northeast Phoenix, Cave Creek), rbarnes@azleg.gov

Rep. Andy Biggs (R-22, Gilbert), abiggs@azleg.gov

Rep. Judy Burges (R-4, Sun City West, Surprise, Wickenburg), jburges@azleg.gov

Rep. Sam Crump (R-6, Anthem, North Phoenix), scrump@azleg.gov

Rep. Eddie Farnsworth (R-22, Gilbert), efarnsworth@azleg.gov

Rep. Trish Groe (R-3, Lake Havasu City, Mohave County), tgroe@azleg.gov

Rep. John Kavanagh (R-8, Scottsdale, Fountain Hills), jkavanagh@azleg.gov

Rep. Rick Murphy (R-9, Peoria, Sun City), rmurphy@azleg.gov

Rep. Bob Stump (R-9, Peoria, Sun City), bstump@azleg.gov

Rep. Jim Weiers, House Speaker (R-10, Northwest Phoenix), jweiers@azleg.gov

Rep. Steven Yarbrough (R-21, Chandler), syarbrough@azleg.gov

Sen. Bob Burns (R-9, Peoria, Sun City), rburns@azleg.gov

Sen. Ron Gould (R-3, Lake Havasu City, Mohave County), rgould@azleg.gov

Sen. Jack Harper (R-4, Sun City West, Surprise, Wickenburg), jharper@azleg.gov

Sen. Karen Johnson (R-18, Mesa), kjohnson@azleg.gov

Sen. Thayer Verschoor (R-22, Gilbert), tverschoor@azleg.gov

To read the text of the bill, copy and paste this URL into your browser:

http://www.azleg.gov/FormatDocument.asp?inDoc=/legtext/48leg/2r/bills/hcr2038p.htm

Tom Jenney
Executive Director
Arizona Federation of Taxpayers
A state chapter of Americans for Prosperity
tjenney@afphq.org
(602) 478-0146