Congressmen Advocate New State Spending Cap

Sponsors of a bill that would cap spending in state government brought in two congressmen (today/yesterday) to rally support for their cause.

Right now the state budget cannot grow year to year faster than individual wages unless a majority of the General Assembly approves it. Republican State Senator Jim Bryson of Franklin is sponsoring legislation that would allow the cap to only be broken by a two-thirds majority.

The proposed constitutional amendment will go before the Senate Judiciary Committee next week. Bryson says it’s good for the taxpayer.

“This will be a way to hopefully force the government to make priorities, set priorities and be able to work within a budget like a family or a small business has to do…This is not going to be a drastic reduction in state spending as it might be characterized. What this is is simply a way to reduce the fluctuation in state spending and smooth it out so it just changes year to year a little bit.”

Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey of Texas and Congressman Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee joined Bryson in support of the bill. Armey is the leader of a Republican think tank called Freedom Works that supports tighter spending limits in government. As states create more budgetary restrictions, he hopes the idea will become “irresistible” to the federal government.

“We did a good job for about five years in the new Republican majority in Washington in restraining spending and restoring our budget to a surplus. After a while it slips back again. This is why a hard institutional barrier to lax budgetary practices is so important. No doubt in my mind, it’s easier achieved at the states than the federal level.”

Colorado voters passed similar legislation called the “Taxpayer Bill of Rights” 14 years ago. But last year they voted again to suspend the hard cap on state spending because it interfered with the state’s business. Armey says the Colorado governor “tricked” voters into approving the reversal.

If Tennessee’s bill passes this legislative session, it will have to pass the next General Assembly then find the approval of voters in 2010.