Axing sales tax from food is right thing to do

One week into the 2006 Utah Legislature and what do we see?

Well, a lot of money.

For months we've been talking about how much cash Utah state government has this year and next. Record levels, in fact.

But as the budget debate advances, I get a kick out of how some politicians — no matter how much money they have — can find excuses for not giving tax cuts or funding this or that needy program.

Between one-time surpluses from last fiscal year and our current fiscal year and estimated tax growth for fiscal 2006-2007 (which starts July 1), legislators and Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. have about $1 billion.

That's a billion with a "B."

Hey, the whole state budget this year is about $9 billion.

So that's more than a 10 percent increase in revenues.

The House Republican caucus several weeks ago, in a closed session, voted to give a $230 million tax cut next year. That would come out of the $570 million or so anticipated increase in ongoing tax revenue.

If they don't give a significant tax cut, House conservatives say the General Fund and the Uniform School Fund — the state's two main funds of Utah-generated tax money — will grow by around 14 percent. Way too much government growth, they say.

House Speaker Greg Curtis, R-Sandy, had his caucus rolling in laughter Tuesday when he gave a stand-up comic rendition of a meeting that morning between Senate and House Republican leaders.

"We have a new word" in legislative budget-speak, said Curtis: "Sustainability."

No longer do legislators have to just worry about one-time cash and projected ongoing revenues for the future; now they have to argue over whether ongoing revenues are "sustainable."

In other words, will those revenues still be there in two, three or four years?

Only once in more than 30 years have state tax revenues actually decreased. And being good little ants — not the fiddling grasshoppers seen in other state legislatures — Utah lawmakers had prepared for the tough winter, socking money away in a Rainy Day account. They nearly drained that account but didn't have to lay off workers or drastically cut programs.