TAXPAYER BREAKING NEWS, June, 2007
continued from MTA Home Page

June 25, 2007. Editorial: Make retirement benefits open to the public, urges the Baltimore Examiner. "Don’t all residents of Maryland deserve to know how much we spend on retiree benefits and how much we will owe for current state employees so we might better prepare for our individual and collective financial future?"
A Cato study reveals that Maryland has $20.4 billion in 'Unfunded Retiree Health Costs.' (Montgomery County has $ 2 billion in such unfunded costs.) Read the entire study Cato here, then savor the arrogance of the Maryland State Retirement and Pension System in fighting transparency and accountability. Cato declares: "In sum, excessively generous pension and health plans for state and local workers have created a roughly $2 trillion fiscal hole. To plug that hole, policymakers should cut back health benefits and transition to savings-based retirement systems for their workers." [MTA's underscoring.] And ask your delegate or state senator how they plan to handle this one.

June 22, 2007. A college education for illegal aliens, reports Kris W. Kobach in the Washington Times. "It's no secret that the Senate immigration bill rewards 12-20 million illegal aliens with immediate amnesty. What is less well known is that the bill also allows illegal aliens to receive in-state tuition rates at public universities, discriminating against U.S. citizens from out of state and law-abiding foreign students. These provisions are buried deep in the Senate bill. They are part of the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act section. The DREAM Act is a nightmare. It repeals a 1996 federal law that prohibits any state from offering in-state tuition rates to illegal aliens, unless the state also offers in-state tuition rates to all U.S. citizens. On top of that, the DREAM Act offers a fast track to U.S. citizenship for illegal aliens who attend college."

June 22, 2007. Pork Project: An earmark lesson for Washington from the states: shame, reports Kimberley A. Strassel in the online Wall Street Journal. "In April, Kansas became the first state in 2007 to sign into law comprehensive legislation mandating a public Web site to show its citizens where all their money was flowing. Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty quickly followed suit, signing his own state's reform the following month. Mr. Perry was next, and Oklahoma and Hawaii have bills awaiting their own governors' signatures. Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels issued an executive order to disclose state contracts all the way back in 2005. In total, some 19 states have passed, or are now working on, legislative or administrative reforms that would hand the public tools to examine government spending." [If link does not open, this is a subscription-only article.]
TBN adds that Taxpayer-Protection Caucus chair delegate Warren Miller's transparency bill could be particularly attractive to a broader, bi-partisan audience. Indeed, Maryland Republicans should make the state transparency bill a priority in the next General Assembly session, and should be encouraged to propose appropriate versions on the county level. In Maryland, "google government" is citizen oversight helping citizen legislators, as MTA declared last March.

June 22, 2007. Montgomery immigration arrests to go on; County executive rebuffs bid to change police policy now, reports Sebastian Montes. "Included in Thursday’s meeting were County Councilman Mark Elrich (D-At large) of Takoma Park, Del. Ana Sol Gutierrez (D-Dist. 18) of Chevy Chase and Gustavo Torres, executive director of Casa of Maryland, an immigrant advocacy group. '‘I do not have comment right now,' an expressionless Torres said as he left the meeting."

June 22, 2007. Critics try again to block Montgomery’s sex-ed plan; Groups ask state school board to halt lesson plan before the fall, reports Marcus Moore in the Gazette. "On Wednesday, the groups asked the state board to throw out the now-approved curriculum before the start of the school year. If the state board does not stop the curriculum, the critics said they would sue the county school system, claiming it released factually inaccurate information and did not put out material for public review before approving the curriculum. The groups also claim the lesson plans violate students’ constitutional rights, including freedom of speech and the right to freely exercise religion."

June 21, 2007. Andy Harris (R-Md.) signs the Taxpayer Protection Pledge; Congressional candidate signs taxpayer protection pledge, reports Americans for Tax Reform. "The Pledge commits signers to 'oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal income tax rates for individuals and/or businesses … and oppose any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates.'"

June 21, 2007. Today, President Bush Signed An Executive Order To Strengthen Our Nation's Commitment To Research On Pluripotent Stem Cells, reports the White House. "Since 2001, the Administration has made $130 million dollars available for research on stem cell lines derived from embryos that had already been destroyed before the President's policy was announced. It has also provided more than $3 billion in Federal funding for research on all forms of stem cells, including those from adult and other non-embryonic sources. This funding has contributed to proven therapeutic treatments in thousands of patients with many different diseases, and it is opening the prospect of new treatments and cures that could transform countless lives."

June 21, 2007. Baltimore Examiner editorial: Hold the champagne on state test scores. "They may not matter for achieving 'Adequate Yearly Progress' under the federal No Child Left Behind law, which requires states to test students and measure schools and school districts based on state standards. But as a measure of absolute knowledge they reveal no student improvement. That hardly reflects well on the state’s education system — especially since not all students take NAEP — nor on the extra funding so hyped as the foundation for recent statewide progress."

June 21, 2007. ATR Asks Which Republican Representatives Have Not Signed the Feeney Letter Urging a Veto of all Tax Hikes? "18 More To Go! 3 More Congressmen Join Rep. Feeney's letter to President Bush urging a veto of all tax increases (View Rep. Feeney's Letter) (View a Coalition letter supporting Rep. Feeney's cause)" "Which members of Congress have not signed this letter yet? Click here to see the list"
(From website of Americans for Tax Reform)

June 19, 2005. Baltimore Examiner Editorial: Halve Baltimore City property taxes. "But so long as property taxes remain twice as high as surrounding jurisdictions, businesses will have a huge disincentive to choose Baltimore. So will young professionals — the kind of people the city wants to attract — who will continue to enjoy the city’s restaurants and entertainment but park their cars in the counties each night."

June 19, 2007. MTA joins letter to President Bush opposing Senate amnesty bill. "At this point,
faithfully enforcing current immigration law and trying to reduce the illegal population through attrition over the next couple of years would do more, by action instead of rhetoric, to set the stage for reviving an immigration debate in the future. But today, to force the Senate bill through would prove a pyrrhic victory at most. It would display bad faith toward the American public."

June 15, 2007. Big Five talk budget strategy; Executives say state should not balance its budget on the backs of the counties, report by Sean R. Sedam and Janel Davis in the Gazette."Most of the executives at Wednesday’s meeting said they prefer a special legislative session on solving the state’s deficit. 'I believe a special session is needed in the fall,' Dixon (D) said. 'We are going through the process of collaborating with the other counties.'”
TBN sees this as a gathering to get the Maryland government class to cheerlead tax hikes, and give cover to politicians of both parties who vote for them. Not a lot of talk here about solutions for unfunded Maryland retiree health costs of $ 20.4 billion.

June 15, 2007. Casa gets $50,000 donation for day labor center; Money is a gift from a Leisure World executive and will come in installments over two years, reports Janel Davis in the Gazette. "The day labor center, which opened earlier this year, was the culmination of years of debate between the city of Gaithersburg and Montgomery County to find a location for the center. Leggett ended the debate by opening a county-funded temporary day labor center amid criticism from anti-immigration groups that disapprove of using taxpayer money for services for possible illegal immigrants. Casa has maintained that its role is immigrant advocacy and not immigration enforcement. It also operates the day labor center in Wheaton, in space leased from one of Dreyfuss’ companies."

June 15, 2007. Frush wants impeachment provision; Prince George’s lawmaker wants to update charter, writes Jennifer Donatelli of the Gazette. "'I think it’s wise to do,' she said as the crowd of about 100 people cheered. ‘'I love this county. This is my county. This will be one of my first bills [next session]. I hope my colleagues will co-sponsor it. It’s the right thing to do.'”She said the legislation could be part of a ‘‘good government” package that addresses lobbying and other issues in the county.
TBN asks whether the good delegate means "recall" rather than "impeachment" ?

June 15, 2007. No bond for Libby, writes Clarice Feldman in American Thinker. "Hint to judges everywhere - the American system of jurisprudence is not predicated on the notion that defendants and prosecutors get absolutely equal treatment. This is a trial that might send a man to prison, not a basketball game; ...."

June 14, 2007. O'Malley sees slots as savior of racing; Governor in talks with Miller, Busch on compromise bill, writes Andrew A. Green in the Baltimore Sun. "O'Malley has generally mentioned slots as an afterthought in his list of ways for the state to fix its fiscal problems, but yesterday he named it as a key element in budget negotiations with Busch and Miller. 'We're trying to sort through all this and do it in the context that is comprehensive and broader than allowing it to be the one issue that derails compromise,' O'Malley said. 'We have been engaged in conversation with the speaker and also the president of the Senate about a comprehensive solution. ... Stay tuned.'"
TBN recalls the 2004 Wall Street Journal warning: "Expanding a state government's gambling empire hardly encourages those in charge of the purse to spend more wisely or thriftily. Which is why, as public policy goes, it's a bad bet."

June 11, 2007. The Immigration Conflagration Is Not Yet Extinguished writes Newt Gingrich in Human Events. "Tell your senator that this is a good time to remember the Reagan rule of 'trust but verify' Show us the controlled border, show us the law enforced on American employers, show us the shift back to English as the official language of government and show us the end of sanctuary cities that refuse to identify those here illegally (by the way the Senate bill actually codifies the right of cities and counties to give sanctuary to illegal terrorists), then we will begin to think about a new bill."

June 8, 2007.Maryland's own Representative Roscoe Bartlett on the defeat of the Senate immigration bill. "I am relieved and grateful that the Senate immigration amnesty bill is dead. America is better off and we can thank a vigilant public determined to oppose amnesty for they are responsible for killing the the immigration deal that had been cut in secret. I hope that the President, Democratic Majority Leader Senator Reid and Republican Leader Mitch McConnell recognize that trying an end run around the deliberative process that has served our country well for more than two hundred years is what doomed this bad bargain."

June 7, 2007. O'Malley Blocks Proposed Fee Increase for Maryland Drivers, reports John Wagner
in the Washington Post. "'Everybody in the General Assembly knows that there needs to be revenue increases if you're going to balance the budget and continue to fund education," Busch said in an interview. Said Miller, 'We're making sure the problem is defined.'"

June 6, 2007. Baltimore Examiner Editorial: Maryland earns ‘D’ on eminent domain report. "Since the Supreme Court’s 2005 Kelo decision granting governments power to condemn property for private economic development, many states have moved to strengthen laws protecting property owners. Maryland is not one of them."

June 6, 2007. Federal transparency: MTA signs coalition letter urging OMB Director to keep pushing the implementation of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act.

June 5, 2007. A related, next door, development on the Administration immigration bill: Virginia State Senator Ken Cuccinelli hits Bush on immigration, reports Seth McLaughlin in the Washington Post. "A Republican member of the Virginia Senate criticized President Bush for supporting an immigration plan that awards amnesty to millions of illegal aliens, telling supporters he no longer considers Mr. Bush the leader of the Republican Party."

June 5, 2007. Amnesty si, English no; there are no English requirements to speak of in this immigration bill, writes Jim Boulet in National Review Online. "Too many people believe — understandably — that Ted Kennedy, John McCain, and the National Council of La Raza are deciding America’s immigration policies. President Bush should strongly consider putting the Senate bill in a deep freeze and starting over, with more advice from his friends."

June 5, 2007. MTA joins Americans for Prosperity coalition to extend internet tax moratorium. "If the moratorium is allowed to expire on November 1, 2007, states will likely impose new taxes on Internet access fees, as well as bit-taxes on downloads, and perhaps even email taxes. There would be unlimited potential for taxation that would impede the flow of commerce and information on the Internet and shut down a great engine of economic growth."

June 3, 2007. Law to protect consumers at the pump has contrary effect, writes Jay Hancock in the Baltimore Sun."The crime: Offering a great deal on regular unleaded.The sentence: Raise prices, soak customers and pile up the profits.Maryland may have trouble protecting residents from murder, robbery and al-Qaida. But it has triumphed over the threat of lower gas prices."
Faithful readers will recall delegate Warren Miller's 2006 effort (supported by MTA, national taxpayer groups, and AAA Mid-Atlantic) to return competition to the Maryland gas pump. Lamentably, too many anti-competition members of both parties on the Economics Matters Committee opposed his efforts to help Maryland motorists. As Miller declared on February 17, 2006: "It’s unfortunate that the committee chose to protect Exxon and BP franchisees instead of Maryland consumers of gasoline."

June 1, 2007. It’s the law, writes Barry Rascovar in the Gazette. "O’Malley could play a constructive role by telling Marylanders a hard-to-accept truth: 'You got a great discount on electric prices for years but it couldn’t last forever.'”