I asked for the attorney general's opinion because I believe a cloud existed about the legality of an agency imposing a tax on the people and other state agencies when no authority has been given to the agency to do so. The attorney general's opinion was clear that DPS had no authority to charge this fee and that in doing so could subject the state to lawsuits about its legality and whether there was a separation of powers issue there. While the legality of the issue is vitally important, there is also a philosophical issue here as well.

The philosophical issue is, especially during tight budget times, whether an agency can supplement its budget from the General Assembly by charging our citizens for services that an agency is charged by law to provide. Traffic control and safety on our roads are duties charged by law to the Highway Patrol. They must be carried out to ensure the safety of our residents, whether at football games, state or county fairs, and festivals. The decision about how to apportion revenue among different agencies is the job of the General Assembly. These decisions are more difficult in times like these when there is not enough money to go around.

However, these decisions have been placed with the Legislature by our founding fathers because the General Assembly is the most direct voice of the people and therefore should best be able to prioritize spending. The Legislature is also in the best position to weigh the objectives of disparate agencies and missions and fund them accordingly. In the past year, the General Assembly wrestled over these priorities and then in a compromise agreed on a budget without tax increases to fund state government. While I am sure that many legislators would have liked to give more money to Education, Public Safety, Medicaid and Corrections, the exigencies of these economic times and the need to fund basic services for other agencies without drastically increasing taxes on South Carolinians prevented this.

The issue is not so simple as whether, in these economically challenging times, the taxpayers of South Carolina should foot the bill for hundreds of state troopers directing traffic at football games. Without a change by the General Assembly, an agency should never have the ability to institute taxes under the guise of a fee on the public to make up for decreased funding or to afford something they desire. The precedent this would create would be awful. Can you imagine a Highway Patrol officer responding to a wreck and telling the victim that before he can investigate the accident the victim would have to pay a $50 fee to continue? The answer is and should be no.

It is very simple: the Executive Branch is to execute the laws and policies that the General Assembly enacts and nothing more. It is not to invent fees and taxes to fund what it wants. I agree that now may be the time to make government more efficient and accountable, but this action is the polar opposite of accountable. The executive agencies cannot become the decision makers of how much they will charge the public. Only the public's elected representatives, who are accountable to the voter for their actions, should be entrusted with that responsibility.

If the idea of charging users a fee for traffic control has merit, then it will be debated and perhaps passed by the General Assembly. However, this decision about whether to raise fees and taxes on the people is one that needs to be made by the Legislature and not by bureaucrats.

Click here to return to story:
http://www.charleston.net/stories/093003/com_30mccon.shtml