Today is the kickoff of the 2008 Legislative session and as always, it makes for 60… well, 70 days, interesting days.

Love it or hate it, it’s here..

Once again, the House Republicans have taken the lead with an agressive agenda of tax cuts and other measures to move our state forward, wouldn’t it make sense to have these guys leading the state forward?

One of the best quotes I’ve seen in a long time came from House Minority Leader Tim Armstead. When asked about teacher pay raises, here was his quote…

“The amount of that raise and the ability to give that raise has to be balanced with the tax burden of West Virginians…” he said.

Kapow!

What a simple, but far reaching statement that probably sounded like ancient Greek to most Democrats.

The Legislature has two masters.

1. The BUDGET. No one, Democrat or Republican ever runs on protecting the state budget. Yet, lawmaker after lawmaker becomes the “protector of the budget”, i.e. the protector of taxes and revenue, especially Democrats. When Republicans talk about reducing ANY potential revenue source for the state budget, Democrats weep as if you are trying to take their first born.

2. The TEACHERS. There is no single entity (not even close in fact) that weilds the power of the teachers. In fact, most legislative sessions revolve around whether or not we give raises, how much those raises are, and whether they are needed. There are millions of taxpayers out there, both personal and business taxpayers who will get nary a mention. Even state employees, and retirees get pushed to the side, although they hold more influence than the people who pay the bills… the taxpayers.

See the Mannix Porterfield, Beckley Register-Herald article below… and, if you want great coverage of the Legislature, few are better than Mannix down at the Register-Herald. Of course, the Charleston papers give blanket coverage as well, Tom Searls of the Gazette is usually a good read and the Daily Mail’s Jake Stump and Justin Anderson have been great, but Mannix is a machine, pumping out five and six articles a day in a “just the facts, maam” style, so check them out when you have a chance.

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House GOP wants major tax cuts

By Mannix Porterfield
Register-Herald reporter

CHARLESTON — House Republicans want to whittle the taxman down some more this year in West Virginia and make it tougher for the Legislature to grow him in any new areas.

In a pre-session news briefing, Minority Leader Tim Armstead, R-Kanawha, announced the GOP would pursue a sweeping agenda couched heavily in tax reform, one that would dictate a “balance” when eyeing any pay hikes for teachers and state employees.

What’s more, the Republican caucus wants either a rule change or constitutional amendment that bars any new taxes unless approved by a two-thirds majority in the House.

“These are true changes that are needed to move our state forward,” Armstead told reporters.

High on the list are a total scrapping of the business franchise tax, one that is estimated to cost $93 million. For now, a law is in force that cuts it .07 percent over the next five years, based on a rate of a tax revenue depletion of $17 million or each .01 eliminated. The GOP would also erase the inventory tax.

Republicans are also pushing for a drop in the corporate net income tax, an immediate end to the food tax, which the Manchin administration has been doing incrementally since coming to power, and limiting the growth of government to a level not to exceed the inflation rate.

“One of our biggest roadblocks is the tax burden individuals and businesses have to bear,” Armstead said.

The GOP leader said the best time for wholesale tax reform is now, while a surplus is in hand.

“Why does it not make more sense for us to bear the brunt of that reduction now, when we have the surplus that we have at this point and allow it to have the positive impact that it will certainly have now so we can continue to stretch out the surpluses we have and the bigger economic production we have?” he asked.

“The state of West Virginia is collecting more money than it takes to run the government. That money needs to be given back to the people and the businesses of West Virginia.”

Besides dropping the remainder of the original tax on groceries, he said, seniors could benefit from a GOP proposal to freeze property evaluations subject to the homestead exemption to current value. Gov. Joe Manchin has chopped the grocery tax from 6 to 4 percent, with an additional penny to be abandoned as of July 1.

Retirees would get another tax break — exemption of certain pensions from state income taxes.

On education, the Republicans are calling for less red tape burdening teachers so they can spend more time in the classroom.

As for a salary hike, Armstead said one must be balanced against the need to cut taxes and spur economic growth — a theory he defended as successful in other states.

Armstead acknowledged lawmakers face “a delicate balance” in lowering taxes and providing teachers and others a pay increase.

“I’m not saying we’re not giving them a raise,” the GOP leader said.

“The amount of that raise and the ability to give that raise has to be balanced with the tax burden of West Virginians. We also need to look at giving counties more local control and hopefully they will use those resources to attract teachers, especially in math and science,” he said.

As for health care, the GOP is seeking a tax credit for the uninsured buying coverage.

Armstead stopped short of referring to West Virginia as a “judicial hellhole,” as some out-of-state groups have labeled the state, but told reporters, “We still lag far behind the other states in improving our legal climate.”

“We have an unpredictable court system in West Virginia that, when businesses want to come here, it is a huge factor that deters them from doing that,” he said.

One issue dear to the GOP in this vein is a change in the joint-several liability, so that one losing in a civil suit only pays to the degree of harm he or the business has caused.

Armstead said tax cuts wouldn’t impede West Virginia’s efforts, already in place, in dealing with long-term debts incurred decades ago. However, he said, using all available cash to satisfy red ink does nothing in the contemporary to spur economic growth, so, as with pay raises and tax cuts, a balance is in order.

“Our agenda is to secure a future for the people of West Virginia today and tomorrow,” Delegate Linda Sumner, R-Raleigh, said afterward.

“If we don’t start now, when are we going to start? We’ve been waiting and waiting for action to be taken. This is the year to do it.”

Delegate Craig Blair, R-Berkeley, appealed to the news media to keep pressure on the House Constitutional Committee so that key Republican issues — such as the “one man, one woman” amendment and two-thirds majority in tax hikes — aren’t dismissed without a hearing.

“The fact is, that committee in the House has been an absolute failure since I’ve been here,” he said.

Another issue he described as vital before that committee is a GOP effort to reverse the Mullens ruling by amendment so that police can monitor drug deals unfettered by the need to justify them before a judge.

But the House committee dismissed one meeting when sheriffs from across the state were waiting for it to start, and on another occasion, the chairman ran out, Blair said.

Armstead said the Republican proposals emanated from months-long talks with small businesses, individuals and community leaders.

“It’s a little broader and more encompassing,” he said. “It’s an agenda that represents what people want to see us do in the Legislature.”

— E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com