North Suburban Republican Forum January, 2011www.NorthSuburbanRepublicanForum.comwww.NorthSuburbanRepublicanForum.org Our next meeting is from 9:15-10:15 am, Saturday morning, January 15th featuring Penn Pfiffner of the Independ ence Institute talking about “Th e Citizen’s Budget”. This time, legislative leaders are not “crying wolf” abou t the State bud get. Learn what you need to understand the crisis, what citizens should do about it and how you can influence the debate. Come hear former le gislator and current Sen ior Fellow at the Ind ependence Institute, Penn R. Pfiffner. He will present “The Citizen’s Budg et”. You will be energized, educated and impressed by the opportunities to be involved and to lead. Remember to invite somebody new to the NSRF as we discuss politics for the Denver North Metro area. Please forwar d this new sletter to other like-minded individuals. We need to be activists to regain our county and country from progressive-minded Liberals. NSRF upc omin g cal endar in 2010 /2011: February 12 – Adams County Republicans Executive Committee Meeting at the fairgrounds March 12 – How to be inf ormed and involved in Colorado and local poli tics April 9 – Colorado’s transportation i ssues
Our next meeting is from 9:15-10:15 am, Saturday morning, January 15th featuring Penn
Pfiffner of the Independence Institute talking about “The Citizen’s Budget”. This time,
legislative leaders are not “crying wolf” about the State budget. Learn what you need to
understand the crisis, what citizens should do about it and how you can influence the
debate. Come hear former legislator and current Senior Fellow at the Independence
Institute, Penn R. Pfiffner. He will present “The Citizen’s Budget”. You will beenergized, educated and impressed by the opportunities to be involved and to lead.
Remember to invite somebody new to the NSRF as we discuss politics for the Denver North
Metro area. Please forward this newsletter to other like-minded individuals. We need to
be activists to regain our county and country from progressive-minded Liberals.
NSRF upcoming calendar in 2010 /2011 :
February 12 – Adams County Republicans Executive Committee Meeting at the fairgrounds
March 12 – How to be informed and involved in Colorado and local politics
The report provides an overview of the structure, timing and size of the State budget. We speak to how the
problems originated and how things have gone wrong in recent years. The Citizens’ Budget includes legislative,constitutional, and policy recommendations to close the looming state budget gap – without raising taxes – and
move Colorado towards sustainable government for good.
Please share this important project with fellow concerned Colorado citizens. We must tackle this problem sooner
than later. To achieve sustainable government in our lifetime, we need your help. Trust us, your children and your
children’s children will thank you.
Important Links:
The 170 page full-color web version of the Citizens’ Budget document can be downloaded in PDF form. You can
click and read individual chapters from the table of contents on page 2.
Additionally, the full document can be downloaded and printed in this full black and whiteprinter -friendly version.
Full-color six page Executive Summary: Road Map for Sustainable Government
Citizens’ Budget individual chapters, broken down by topic:
Introduction and Overview: The State’s Budget
State Budget Process
Priority-Based Budgeting
Policy Changes to Make a Difference:Higher Education Policy
K-12 Education Policy
Health Care Policy
Colorado’s Pension Liability
Retirement Health Benefits
Transportation Policy
CDOT Debt
Old Age Pension Plan
Corporate Welfare
Revenues from Tobacco “Master Settlement Agreement” of 1998
The Case for Further Sentencing Reform in Colorado
Congress's Broken WindowsThe president must have power over the budget to make spending reform work.
Here's something most Republicans don't want to hear: There is no way the born-again, straight and sober
Republicans of the 112th Congress are going to get spending under control unless they involve the fellow at 1600
Pennsylvania Avenue.
The spending reforms that Speaker John Boehner and his counterinsurgency lieutenants have proposed—spendingreductions to offset any mandatory increases or stated budget limits for the current fiscal year—are terrific. But if you
think Congress, by itself, is going to sustain this discipline over time, I have a bridge in Alaska I'd like to sell you.
Congress is a legislative body. Like legislative bodies from ancient Rome till now, its DNA is not to forgo things but to
do stuff. Everyone agrees that Congress holds something called the "power of the purse." And don't they know it.
Nowhere in the Constitution will you find that phrase. Nor in the Constitution that they are reading on the House floor
Thursday will you hear the words "spend," "programs" or "outlays." All this, though, is what Congress has been about
since anyone can remember.
The reform groups and blogosphere are threatening hellfire for any Republicans who cross them on spending, but take
my word for it: Once any Congress makes it to the budgeting "out years," all that hellfire will be just a puff of smoke.
James Buchanan, the father of public choice theory, won a Nobel Prize for unraveling this reality.
It is not hopeless. The locus of hope, however, lies with the Executive, a word at least nominally associated with
responsibility. In an article on these pages recently ("Time for Emergency Economic Reform"), a successful political
executive, Gov. Mitch Daniels of Indiana, identified the sine-qua-non reform to sustain spending discipline: presidential
However you define the idea—impoundment, rescission, the line-item veto—it is the power of a president or governor
to zero out some of the spending pile that a legislature dumps on the front lawn. It is executive pushback against
wretched legislative excess.
"Presidents once had the authority," Mr. Daniels wrote, "to spend less than Congress made available through
appropriation. On reflection, nothing else makes sense."
Ask New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie about the impoundment power. He has it, and he'll tell you it is indispensable to
what he is trying to do in his hopelessly profligate state. Absent that impoundment power, a lot of the Christie pitch
would be just rhetoric.
Before getting into why 43 governors, but not the U.S. president, have this power, a comment on those who say that
impoundment is a pop-gun, that it can't control entitlements or mega-programs.
The Roman Senate contemplates bankrupting the empire.
Perhaps you have heard of the "broken windows" theory of urban chaos.
It says that in a neighborhood wracked with murder and mayhem, it isimportant to repair broken windows. The idea is that leaving small
matters like broken windows unrepaired tells criminals that no one cares
if they break the neighborhood further, and it tells the people there is no
hope of fixing the big things. In New York City, this worked.
Earmarks, pork, corporate carve-outs and all that are Congress's broken windows.
Every knowing article written on this subject points out what a "small" percentage of spending this stuff is. But the
behavioral incentives for big-time criminals in the Bronx and big-time spenders in a legislature like Congress are thesame. An annual federal budget of $3.5 trillion is a towering monument of broken windows. Federal highway spending
has been on automatic pilot for nearly 20 years. Sen. Tom Coburn has a long list of programs uselessly duplicated
across the government; nine agencies run 69 early-education programs.
Here is a list of U.S. presidents and public figures who have used or supported the impoundment power: Abe Lincoln,
Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, JFK, LBJ, Bill Clinton, the Bushes, John McCain, John Kerry, Al Gore, Pat
Buchanan, Jeb Hensarling, Russ Feingold, Joe Lieberman, Judd Gregg, and not least both Paul Ryan, the new House
Budget chairman, and Barack Obama.
This crucial executive ballast does not exist mainly for two reasons.
In the early 1970s, Richard Nixon tried aggressively to impound spending, touching off a war with Congress's
"prerogatives." Then Watergate broke. In a fury, one of the most liberal Congresses passed the Budget Control Act of
1974 (which should be repealed). It transferred most spending "control" to Congress, which one commentator at the
According to CNS News, under the leadership of a Democratic controlled Congress (remember – they are
the ones that set spending) the national debt increased $5.3.43 trillion or $3.66 billion per day!
Putting that in perspective, in the 1,461 days Nancy Pelosi served as Speaker of the House the nation
amassed more debt than under all other Speakers in history – COMBINED.
Is it any wonder why people are upset with our government?
Falling in the category of ‘people in glass houses shouldn’t throw rocks’ full disclosure mandates that
Republican leadership certainly had their hand in a ballooning national debt as well.Under House Speaker Dennis Hastert the national debt increased over $3 trillion from 1999 to 2007. Prio
to Hastert, the debt increased $812 billion in the four years under Speaker Newt Gingrich.
However, it is worth noting that while Republicans did their fare share previously, under a Democra
controlled House the debt increased more than three times as fast.
Let us hearken back to Nancy Pelosi’s inaugural address:
“After years of historic deficits, this 110th Congress will commit itself to a higher standard: Pay as you go,
no new deficit spending. Our new America will provide unlimited opportunity for future generations, not
burden them with mountains of debt.”
~ Nancy Pelosi, January 4, 2007It would appear the Democrat’s definition of a ‘mountain of debt’ is much different than that of the
Time to preview Colorado’s upcoming legislative session and the debates over bills and policies that couldaffect K-12 education in our state. Session starts in two days, and Ed News Colorado has posted
the annual preview by Todd Engdahl — a must-read for local education transformers.
Of course, anyone who has been paying attention or reading what I have to say, knows what the drivingtheme will be. Engdahl’s story hammers it home:
“The budget is the big elephant in the room,” said Vincent Badolato, public affairs vice president for theColorado League of Charter Schools.
He and many others identify budget cuts as the overarching education issue of 2011 – as they were in
2009 and 2010. “It’s budget, budget, budget,” said Moira Cullen of the lobbying firm Capstone Group.State K-12 support and higher education funding consume 55 percent of the state’s $7 billion generafund. Continued budget belt-tightening for education is a given because state revenues remain fragile and
because the legislature must approve a balanced budget, can’t increase taxes without voter approval andalso faces spending demands for Medicaid and other human services programs.
In some ways, it’s not a whole lot different than the prospects facing the opening of last year’s session
But this time around there is no Race to the Top, no big reform bill push, a divided legislature, and agovernor without a focus on significant changes to education. Twenty-eleven also isn’t an election year
(we’re not counting school boards here).
Still, Ed News Colorado reports on a couple intriguing ideas:
Sen. Nancy Spence, R-Centennial, has an administrative idea that likely will make districts nervous. Shesaid in December that she’s planning legislation that would require school districts to seek requests for
proposals from private companies for outsourcing non-instructional services such as transportation
janitorial, food service and similar functions. Districts then would be required to hold public meetings toinform citizens about the comparative costs of outsourcing a service as opposed to providing it with
district employees….
Freshman Rep. Don Beezley, R-Broomfield, said, “You’ll find me pretty focused on charter schools and
parent empowerment. I’m looking at a couple of charter-related bills.” Specifics remain to be fleshed out; “We’re working on it.”
Beezley said he’s interested in the “parent trigger” idea, referring to a California law that allows organizedparents to take over a failing school and have it turned in to a charter, its teachers and principals
replaced.
And we can always hope for a surprise or two that includes broader support for bold, outside-the-boxthinking — like the creation of a cost-saving tuition tax credit program that expands private school choice
That’s what my Education Policy Center friends have researched and proposed in the K-12 educationchapter of the new Citizens’ Budget.
Some lawmakers and interest groups may insist on a quiet session. But no matter what, I’ll still be out
here making noise for some meaningful K-12 policy changes that provide choice and accountabilitychanges that empower families. I hope more of my education transformer friends will join me.
This newsletter has a Republican viewpoint but may or may not reflect theviews of the NSRF Board of Directors. It is intended to inform and for the
thoughtful consideration of our members and as potential discussionstarters.
Penn Pfiffner is a former state representative, having served eight years in
the legislature. His major bills included the enhanced sentences fordangerous pedophiles and the state’s first full-restitution policy. Heauthored the repeal of the capital gains tax, and wrote the majorderegulation bill of the decade.
He has a financial and managerial consulting practice, ConstructionEconomics, LLC. He taught college Economics at night school, at both the graduate andundergraduate level, for thirteen years. Penn earned a Masters in Financefrom the University of Colorado at Denver.
He is currently a Senior Fellow at the Independence Institute and servedfor six years as the President of the Colorado Union of Taxpayers; hecontinues to serve on the Board.
Penn and Karen are the parents of three adult children. He is a veteran,having served as an officer in the Navy until the end of 1979.
Modify 3rd party payer to health savings account – like spending(take care not to double count) 28.0 Medicaid, CHBP
Reduce incarceration of non-violent offenders 78.0 Corrections
Cut in half technical parole revocations 20.0 Corrections
Institute defined contribution plan for retirement health benefits 10.1 Other Retirement Benefits
Faculty productivity 50.0 to 67.0 Higher Education
Miscellaneous savings 4.0 various
Policy changes that the Legislature should offer to the people,
who must approve in changes to the constitution:
Savings
Action (millions) Department
Roll the State’s own Social Security System into welfare 105.0 Off-budget
Redirect COGO funds to the General Fund 137.0 Off-budget
Permit managed competition for internal operations that mimic private business System wide
Repeal Amendment 23 School Finance Act
Policy changes that would have long term effects:
Action Savings (millions) Department
Copy other states’ commissions to consider opting out of Med-icaid; let federal health care program pick it up; about 60% isfuture cost avoidance 1,000.0 Medicaid
Institute defined contribution plan would allow the State to fully
fund the Health Care Trust Plan, closing a $1 Billion unfundedliability Other Retirement Benefits
Policy changes that avoid future costs:Action Savings (millions) Department
Reverse eligibility for adults under the Children’s Benefit 140.5 Medicaid
Policy changes that have important budgetary impacts,
although not quantified in this report:
Action Department
Change PERA for new hires to a defined contribution plan PERA
Separate PERA fund balances into new and old PERA
Conform retirement ages for all PERA enrollees to match Social Security guidelines (thesethree moves could contribute as much as $300 million per year to plug the $23.4 billionunfunded liability) PERA
Sunset the AED and SAED payments to make PERA accountable for reaching fully-fundedstatus. PERA
Relieve taxpayers from the responsibility of future bailouts PERA
Move to higher education subsidies through only student stipends; ending direct subsidies tostate colleges and universities Higher Education
Reform the power of higher education institutions to operate as independent entities withnew and flexible funds generating activities Higher Education
Enhance the budget process by adhering to Priority-Based methods System-wide
Enhance the budget process by focusing on outcomes rather than only inputs System-wide
Governor’s Office of Prevent further damage to the economy by corporate welfare Economic Develop-(This will immediately save between $4 million and $18 million per year) ment; others
Reverse the Bridge Enterprise Fund power to incur debt without a vote of the people Department of Revenue
Develop goals for expansion of tolled traffic lanes; consider how to develop separate tolledlanes for trucking Transportation
Fund only mass transit that relieves congestion; re-balance the Denver-metro split betweenhighways and mass transit Transportation
Reform the make-up of the Colorado Transportation Commission TransportationEnhance how highways are funded, through greater privatization Transportation
Public Utilities Com-Deregulate transportation of people to introduce market reforms mission
Consolidate the Governor’s Energy Office into executive agencies GEO
Policy changes that would affect local governments:
Action Savings (millions) Department
Institute defined contribution plan 43.6 Other Retirement Benefits
