Are we breaking ‘free at last’ from anti-tax dogma? (Capitol Updates)

Steve Lewis served as Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1989-1991. He currently practices law in Tulsa and represents clients at the Capitol.

Free at last! There was an interesting exchange on the House floor last week between Rep. Earl Sears, Chair of the House Finance Subcommittee and Democratic Leader Scott Inman. Sears was presenting SB 170 repealing the income tax cut that could have been triggered by a slight uptick in the economy. Sears explained that if the tax cut were to occur it would cause a larger hole in the budget.

Inman, unable to resist the opportunity to needle Sears, asked him if it is true, as Republicans say, that tax cuts produce more tax revenue, why would we repeal a potential tax cut? Sears replied that we are just dealing with the facts as they are, and we can’t afford this tax cut now. He said the Republican Caucus will get back to “good tax policy” when the economy permits. The bill passed 75-12 with Inman and other Democrats voting “yes.” All 12 “no” votes were Republicans, and 9 of the 11 “excused” from voting were Republicans. Some of those 9 excused were out of the chamber on other legislative business, but some were likely “walking” the vote.

A strong majority of the majority Republicans showed the will vote to repeal a tax cut that has yet to materialize. But given the $878 million budget deficit, this should be a relatively easy vote. What will they do with an actual tax increase? The 12 “no” and 9 “excused” votes on repealing the trigger might give an approximate read on where the numbers lie. It’s probable that quite a few of those 21 Republicans would not vote for any tax increase. The constitution requires a vote of 75 percent of the members of the House and Senate to pass a revenue bill. With the House currently consisting of 98 members, I would say it will take 74 of the 98 members to pass the bill.

House leaders are expected to announce their budget proposal sometime this week. It seems clear they are planning to call for several revenue increases to help fill the budget gap. That’s why I say, “free at last.” At least for now, most of the Republican members appear to have freed themselves from the dogma that taxes are always bad or that all taxes are bad. They appear ready to “deal with the facts as they are.” But will they propose a revenue program that is large enough to fix the problem and broad enough to attract both Republican and Democratic votes?

We’ll know how serious they are when we see the proposal. It’s the Democrats’ obligation to be reasonable, but the Republicans are leading, so it is their obligation to meet the Democrats with a reasonable proposal — something neither side really loves but both sides can vote for. If Oklahoma is to move forward, the time for purity on revenue issues is over.