GUEST COLUMN
Senate's Budget
Plan Spends
Too Much,
Offers No Tax Relief
BY MICHAEL BALLANCE
TWo senators in the North Caro
lina legislature took a defiant stand
on June 2 against a budget proposal
they feel spends too much and does
not offer enough relief to taxpayers.
Senate Minority Leader Bob Shaw
(R-Guilford) and Sen. Sandy Sands
(D-Rockingham) were the only sen
ators to oppose the SzzzZz budgvt
plan that passed by a vote of 43-2
after only 20 minutes of debate.
The proposal details how the state
will allocate nearly SI billion in so
called "surplus" revenue over the
next year. Among the many appro
priations, the Senate budget plan
spends $287 million for funding 12
new Smart Start sites and S4.6 mil
lion to begin the information high
way.
Furthermore, the Senate proposal
includes numerous capital projects
including S10 million to improve the
Elizabeth ii Historic Site in the pow
crful Senate President Pro Tempore
Marc Basnight's district. The plan
also appropriates $30.9 million for a
new Natural Science Museum in
Raleigh, $13 million to help build a
new basketball arena at N.C. State
University and $38 million more for
other new buildings at state univer
sities.
ui on ducmpi iu appear fiscally re
sponsible, the Senate set aside over
$220 million for allocation to the
state reserve account. While lauded
by Senate Iradrrs such as B^ssigh!
and George Daniel (D-Caswell) as a
great achievement in fiscal restraint,
the lion's share of the savings ($186
million) is required by law to be
place in "Rainy Day" Fund ($126
million) and the repairs and renova
tions fund ($60 million).
Only $34.2 million, or 3 percent
of the $1 billion "surplus," was
piaced in reserve voluntarily. Never
theless, this was apparently enough
to win the support of many Repub
licans who were hesitant about the
plan initially. Sen. Don Kincaid (R
C aldwel!) remarked, "That savings
of S34 million means a lot to me
and, I'm sure, to a lot of other sena
tors."
The plan did not, however, please
Republican leader Bob Shaw, who
voted against the budget. Toe rea
son we have a surplus is because we
raised people's taxes," Shaw said,
referring to the $600 million tax in
crease passed by the legislature in
1991. Shaw went on to state that the
budget plan basically spends all of
the revenue not mandated for sav
ings.
He feels that legislators should
give the people their money back
before they embark on any new
spending projects. According to
Shaw, there is enough money to pro
vide significant tax relief to the peo
ple of North Carolina through the
elimination of the intangibles tax,
the reduction of the corporate in
come tax. and the phasing out of the
sales tax on food Bills to accom
plish these goals have been intro
duced in either the Senate or the
House, along with another bill to re
bate part of the "surplus" to taxpay
er! this year.
"You pay your debts first, and
then you eat," Shaw says.
The other "no" vote came from
Sands, who broke ranks with Senate
Democrats in opposing the budget
plan. In explaining his vote. Sands
stated, "I have always tried to vote
my conscience and do the right
thing, and I just couldn't vote for it"
Sands refused to discuss further
what portions of the budget he dis
agreed with or what changes he
would like to see made in the pro
posal. "Let's just see how it comes
out," said Sands, indicating a reluc
tance to comment on particulars un
til the budget comes out of confer
ence. Political insiders speculate that
Sands' vote reflects a concern that
certain provisions in the budget will
not please voter; in the 5 th District,
where Sands is running for Con
gress.
The next step in the budget
process is for the House to vote on
its proposed budget, which will cer
tainly differ from that of the Senate.
The two houses will then meet in a
conference committee to iron out the
differences in the plans, which are
expected to be great. Unfortunately,
these differences probably won't ex
A
tend to the question of whether or
not to spend the unanticipated rev
enue.
Regardless of their reasons.
Senators Shaw and Sands deserve
credit for taking a stand against the
Senate budget plan. Responsible
legislators should be figuring out a
way fn giy# "cnrrUnc rtVini!?"
to the taxpayers from which it was
stripped ? not devising new ways to
spend it.
.Michael Ballance is a writer for
Carolina Journal Weekly Report, a
newsletter on North Carolina
public policy.
Golf ? Metaphor For Volucs Ai id Virtues?
Colman McCarthy, Washington
Post columnist, ihcOiizcs thai goi
fers arc now second only to smokers
in public scorn.
He cites a recent Wall Street
Journal story headlined "Golf Cour
ses Are Denounced as Health Haz
ards" ? a piece about environmental
groups who complain about pesti
cides and fertilizers and "would like
warning labels on scorecards."
He also quotes an international
group, the Global Anti-Golf Move
ment (GAG'M) which claims the
ongoing golfing boon "leads to
health problems for local communi
ties, populations downstream and
even golfers."
McCarthy takes issue, writing,
"Sure, America's emergency rooms
arc crammed with coughing and
gasping people dying from golfitis."
Way to tell 'em!
It made me think about the trip I
made earlier today from Shallotte to
Calabash and back, past Brierwood,
Bricklanding Plantation, Lion's Paw,
The Pearl and Sandpiper Bay. I re
membered when much of that land
was still scrub pine thicket and tried
to imagine all the ugly ways it might
have been developed if some local
folks hadn't envisioned the potential
golf could have for the South
Brunswick Islands.
I don't play, but 1 think I might
ltir^ tc% fair** it im ?i>Um I
? ? -r -?/ ?
have a little more free time. I am
nonetheless glad that it's here. Golf
has done good things for Brunswick
County.
Golfers take vacations year
round, adding jobs and stoking the
economy through the lean months.
They're the polar opposite of the old
stereotype of the tourist who arrives
with a twenty dollar bill and the
shirt on his back ? and doesn't
change either one during the week.
They're usually solid citizens and as
a group tend not to put a strain on
the domestic tranquility or the local
constabulary.
As for the pollution criticisms,
just a little research will tell you that
great strides are being made in such
areas as biological pcsticides and
herbicides ? fighting nature with na
ture instead of with poisons ? even
right here in our own back yard. I
had a very interesting lesson along
those lines one chilly day this past
winter when I accompanied Plant
Doctor Bruce Williams and a couple
of other scientists on an experimen
Lynn
Carlson
tai poa-grass-killing expedition.
Their zeal was impressive to behold.
McCarthy puts it better than I can.
"Metaphorically, the whole world is
a golf course. Our lives are lined
with out-of-bounds. We are forever
replacing our divots, known as life's
apologies. We pray for miracles, like
clearing a pond with a three iron
which is as much a thrill as being
understood by our children.
"We long for cheerful playmates
who keep our score without judging
it. We seek enlightened ideas in the
salons of cosmic thinkers, only to
recall the caddyshacks of our youth
where how to face 18 holes of heavy
lifting was character-building educa
tion. We search haltingly for values
and virtues; calling a penalty shot on
ourself is the rarest honesty and top
ping a tec shot assures humility? or
should, the fifth time we do it.
"More golf, not less, is needed.
Which is to say, more sun, more ex
erase, more coiupwKmaiup, more
lucky bounces and more morning
dew. We should take two penalty
strokes for that?"
? ? ?
It was clearly the most bizarre
two hours in the history of live tele
vision news coverage.
We honed in on CNN as soon as
we learned OJ. Simpson's friend
would be holding a press confer
ence. We shook our heads in utter
disbelief as Simpson's rambling sui
cide (or maybe not) note was read.
Just when it seemed things
couldn't get any weirder, the slow
speed "chase" got under way, culmi
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nating with chaos in the estate drive
way ana, rinaiiy, the arrest of
Simpson for the hideous murder of
his ex-wife and a male guest at her
home.
It was riveting television ? the in
terviews with acquaintances and fri
ends, the bystanders cheering on the
fallen hero, the gruesome possibility
of a celebrity suicide in front of ca
meras. You can't blame the networks
for broadcasting it, and you can't
blame viewers for drinking it up.
Here's where you can lay blame.
News people have no business refer
ring to an accused murderer as
"OJ." any more than it would have
been appropriate to talk about
"Davey's" trip to the gas chamber
last week. And maybe it's a simple
case of news celebs drawing the
wagons into a circle, but Defendant
Simpson is being treated with vastly
more warmth and deference than,
for example. Senators Fackwumi
and Rostenkowski, whose alleged
victims are all still breathing.
I saw a local "roving reporter"
piece on television in which guys on
the streets of Wilmington speculated
maiier-of-factly about the pussibiliiy
that Simpson may have "just lost it,"
and how, sure, they could see a guy
snapping like that under certain cir
cumstances.
Do you suppose their rationale
would apply similarly if their sister
met the fate of Nicole Brown
Simpson? If their best buddy made
Ronald Goldman's fatal mistake, of
paying a call ? for whatever rea
son ? st the home of a legally single
woman?
No matter who you think did it or
why: Thou Shalt Not Kill, fellows.
Remember?
Saunders, O.D.
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