State lawmakers want to raise taxes rather than reduce spending

State Rep. Doug Smith has the right reaction to state Senate moves to increase the gasoline tax -- limit overall state spending and use any surplus for infrastructure improvements.

This is not a new idea for Smith. He has been pushing legislation for years that would permanently limit the growth of state government. But other lawmakers hold these bills in the same disregard they show for any restraint on their ability to spend taxpayers' money.

In the past, Smith has introduced bills that would limit the annual growth in state spending according to a formula based on population growth and inflation. This year, he introduced a bill that would limit government growth to 3 percent each year.

Such limits would give state leaders enough room to reasonably adjust state spending and to create worthwhile new programs. But they wouldn't have enough room to fulfill all their wish lists and grow the size of state government to the point at which it becomes unsustainable.

This plan would keep lawmakers from working their way back into the situation from which they just emerged. During the economic growth years of the late '90s, lawmakers spent all the money they could, even money they didn't have but hoped to get. They grew the size and cost of state government so high that the economic downturn of the past few years was much harder on the state than it should have been.

Smith's plan also would allow the state to catch up on road building and maintenance. State revenues would increase more than the 3 percent limit in good

years, and that money would be spent on roads,

other infrastructure improvements and capital projects.

But now that state revenues are growing again, lawmakers are determined to spend all they can once more. They aren't restraining spending on pet projects. They aren't even fully repaying the trust funds they raided during the lean years.

The state Senate is even considering increasing the gasoline tax in order to raise money to spend on road maintenance and improvements.

Smith says they would do better to hold down overall spending and use the extra money that comes in during economic growth to pay for roads and capital projects.

He's right. But his colleagues have never shown the inclination toward fiscal discipline necessary to adopt his plan.