May 2, 2004

Tennessean Gets It Wrong on Taxpayers Bill of Rights

A Tennessean story today on the state's rising revenue growth mentions the proposed Taxpayers Bill of Rights amendment to the state constitution - but gets the details wrong.

[State Sen. Jim] Bryson is a proponent of a Taxpayer Bill of Rights, which would cap state spending and tie it to the rate of inflation. All tax increases would have to be approved by voters, and taxes collected above the inflation rate would be refunded automatically.

Personal income is the measure by which the state constitution currently caps the growth in spending, and has since 1978. But that cap, called the Copeland Cap after amendment author David Copeland, allows the legislature to exceed the limit by a simple majority vote. As passing a budget merely requires a simple majority vote, legislatures often vote to exceed the cap. The Copeland Cap has been overridden 11 of the past 20 years, costing Tennessee taxpayers more than $3 billion.

The growth formula the legislature adopted as per the Copeland amendment allowed for state spending to grow 5.5 percent per year over the last 19 years. The budget-busters on Capital Hill have instead increased spending by 7.3 percent per year.

Bryson's proposed amendment would require a two-thirds majority vote in the legislature to exceed the Copeland Cap. As Bryson said here: "Getting a 2/3 vote is very difficult yet allows for an override when there is consensus on the need."

Perhaps The Tennessean reporter was thinking about the original version of Bryson's legislation - but even if so, the paper still got it wrong. Bryson's original proposal would have tied spending to the rate of inflation combined with population growth. If inflation was 3 percent and the state's population rose 3 percent, spending could grow 6 percent.

So, either way, The Tennessean got it wrong. Which is what you would expect from a newspaper that has mostly ignored the Taxpayers Bill of Rights story.

I can't for the life of me figure out why The Tennessean can't find accurate information about the Taxpayers Bill of Rights proposal. Sen. Bryson has details on his website. I have posted plenty of frequently-updated information here. And you can read the legislation as proposed and as amended on the state legislature's website by clicking the "legislation" tab and searching for SJR88 (Senate Joint Resolution 88), the proposed. Taxpayers Bill of Rights amendment.