Better South book spurs MS discussion

The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal in Tupelo today encouraged Mississippi lawmakers to take a long, hard look at the state's tax structure as recommended in a new book by the Center for a Better South:

Mississippi always should be open to suggestions about making its tax policies fairer, with rates and applications reflective of proportionality and the ability to pay more than meeting the political needs of special interests.... The idea of progressive taxation is basically simple: tax people fairly, never loading up on anyone disproportionately, and examine every kind of taxation. Mississippi isn't known for its tax reform zeal. Our statewide sales tax is among the highest in the nation even though we have the lowest per capita income - and a higher percentage of people living in poverty than nationwide....

Everybody likes tax breaks, and some are deserved, but unfair taxation ultimately hurts a state's or city's or county's prosperity. It reduces spendable income disproportionately and tends to mire people more deeply in economic disadvantage. Tax issues always are complex, and they are controversial from the start of discussions. Mississippi would do itself a favor - ultimately serving all citizens - in reexamining tax policies with the goal of maximizing fairness.

Also today, the Center's ideas were featured on a radio report offered by Mississippi Public Broadcasting:

Mississippi's tax system is outdated, antiquated and needs to be upgraded. That's the assessment of a study group conducting research into tax reform throughout the south.

• Click here to listen to the radio report.

Arkansas, Mississippi respond to new book

Public officials in Arkansas and Mississippi are responding to ideas in the Center for a Better South's new book, Doing Better: Progressive Tax Reform for the American South.

Today in Mississippi, Better South President Andy Brack addressed more than 50 leaders at a policy luncheon sponsored by the Stennis Institute. Former Gov. William Winter, who introduced Brack, noted:

[S]tate officials often "are fixing things that need to be fixed right away without having the benefit of really an objective, long-term analysis of the problem. That's how we have levied taxes for the most part. We need some additional revenues so we put it where it is easiest to get. That's not a very good way to maintain a fair, equitable tax structure."

In the same story by the Associated Press:

One of the most influential Mississippi budget writers, Rep. Cecil Brown, D-Jackson, said lawmakers need to embark on detailed discussion of the state's tax structure, but doing so won't be quick or easy.

"What they're saying is we need to find the most equitable way to distribute the tax burden. Equity is in the eye of the beholder," Brown said. "It's just very difficult to eliminate any of the exemptions and raise anybody else's taxes. That was the debate you heard ... on the cigarette tax and the grocery tax."

A key Arkansas legislator noted in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that one of the Center's ideas -- studying the way the state provides millions of dollars of tax exemptions -- had merit:

Rep. Phil Jackson, R-Berryville, the chairman of the House Committee on Revenue and Taxation, said those exemptions are often inconsistently applied. He said lawmakers are now studying a proposal to require regular reviews of sales-tax exemptions.

"Right now we put an exemption in, and we don'’t keep track of it to make sure it'’s doing what it'’s supposed to be doing,"” Jackson said.

Other recent media coverage on the book:

• Study recommends tax reform, WLBT TV, Mississippi
• Group recommends tax reform for Arkansas, WTHV TV, Arkansas
• Tax reform proposal gets mixed reviews, Madison County (MS) Journal
• Think tank recommends tax reform for Southern states, WLOX TV, Biloxi, Mississippi
• Tax reform recommended for Southern states, The State, Columbia, SC
  

NC press highlights Better South book

The North Carolina media are highlighting a new policy book by the Center for a Better South that calls on Southern legislators to modernize tax structures for the 21st century economy.

StateGovernmentRadio.com offers a long audio piece on its Web site how North Carolina had implemented five of the 11 proposals in the book. Listen to radio piece.

Meanwhile the Charlotte Business Journal noted the Tarheel State had a more progressive tax structure than other Southern states, but still had a long way to go:

"Unfortunately, our state governments generally haven't adapted to the new economy," center President Andy Brack said during a news conference in Charlotte Monday. "Their structures have outdated tax components that need to be modernized for today's market."

The story also highlighted several proposals from the book, Doing Better: Progressive Tax Reform for the American South:

Brack's group favors more simplified tax policies that eliminate tax breaks and exemptions favoring specific groups. He favors raising cigarette taxes to the national average of 92 cents per pack and taxing additional services. He notes that people who pay lawn-care services don't pay sales tax, while those who buy lawn mowers have to pay the tax.

Other proposals include a call for ending sales-tax holidays and using means testing for taxing senior citizens, rather than current codes that exempt pension and Social Security income for all elderly citizens, regardless of income. Those preferences cost North Carolina about $494 million in 2004, he said.

Louisiana state revenue is up

...believe it or not! Read here in the New York Times for the story.

The headline is stunning: while everyone expected Louisiana to be financially ruined by Katrina, the state government expects to realize a windfall at the end of the current fiscal year (which ends Friday).

The reason? Sales tax revenue is up $500 million over projections, which the article attributes to higher oil and gas prices (and royalties), spending on gambling by relief workers and insurance adjusters, and spending on replacement purchases by those displaced by Katrina.

Keep reading the article, however, and you learn that income taxes and property taxes are still expected to be far below the levels projected a year ago. And that could still be a huge problem, especially for parish and local governments.

It would seem that this initial, surprising bit of good news may ultimately prove distracting from the ongoing devastation wrought by last year's storms.

Meat Processing Alters the Rural South

The expansion of the meat-processing industry in the rural South has served as a magnet for low-skill Hispanic workers who are, in turn, is remaking the demographic profile of many rural communities. This is the conclusion of research article that appeared in the June 2006 Amber Waves, a publication of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The article argues that the combination of changing consumer preferences, technological developments, industry concentration and relocation to rural areas has increased the demand for meat products and meat-processing employees. Between 1981 and 2000, for instance, the number of meat-processing employees in the South expanded to 225,026 from 115,856. Much of this growth occurred in rural areas like North Carolina’s Sampson County, and today some 75 percent of the South’s meat-processing jobs are in rural areas.

While employment in the meat-processing industry has grown, wages have not. The combination of low-wages and dangerous working conditions has led to most jobs being taken by low-skilled Hispanic workers, most of whom are foreign born.

The influx of Hispanic workers is changing the demographic profile of rural communities and presents communities with a mix of costs and benefits. On the one hand, Hispanic workers continue to feed the growth of the meat-processing industry – one of the few manufacturing industries that has expanded. Moreover, Hispanic workers use their earnings to stimulate local rural economies. On the other hand, questions abound about the cost, if any, of providing social services to Hispanic workers and how to integrate new workers into the life of the community.

Better South issues first policy book

UPDATED 6/24

JUNE 23, 2006 -- In this new book of ideas offered by the Center for a Better South, we argue it is incumbent for lawmakers across the South to revisit their state tax codes in a holistic manner to bring our tax systems into the 21st century. (Go to book download page or buy the book.)

All components -- the income tax, sales tax, property tax and others --- should be thoroughly examined and modernized to improve and ensure the fairness, adequacy and integrity of our tax systems. In other words, lawmakers can truly represent people across the South by restructuring state tax codes to make them more representative of today's complex and rapidly changing economy.

Doing Better: Progressive Tax Reform for the American South ($10), written by Sarah Beth Coffey with Alan Essig, is the first of a Better South series that will examine tax and budget issues in the Southern states. The 11 ideas presented in this discussion are an introduction to progressive tax reform that can lead us to a truly better South.

From a 6/22 blog posting by the Atlanta Journal Constitution:

"The study urges a no-nonsense approach, such as eliminating sales tax holidays and exemptions on items like groceries and raising cigarette taxes to the national average....The report has a lot of interesting ideas, but the one we’d use for a conversation starter is, “Rethink tax preferences based on age alone.”

From a 6/23 column by Tom Crawford of Capitol Impact's Georgia Report (registration required):

"Georgia and its sister states in the South should consider restructuring their tax codes so that they are fairer to taxpayers and provide a revenue source that will enable the region to compete more effectively in the emerging marketplace of the 21st century. That’s the major takeaway from a report developed recently by the Center for a Better South, a Charleston, S.C.-based think tank that advocates progressive policies for the southern region."

From a 6/24 story in the Augusta Chronicle:

ATLANTA - Just as Southern cooking with lots of lard and butter isn't necessarily healthy, the way Southerners are taxed might not be the best way to raise money for government, a think tank said Friday.

The Center for a Better South released a 128-page proposal for how states such as Georgia and South Carolina could make taxes fairer while ensuring funding for vital services such as public education and health care.

"This is not necessarily about raising taxes," said Andy Brack, the president of the center.

Later in the story, a top Georgia Republican validated some aspects of the Center's report:

"Georgia) House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Larry O'Neal, a Warner Robbins Republican who leads a panel looking at tax reform, agreed that the issue needs to be approached in a way that doesn't dramatically affect state revenues. He also said sales-tax exemptions were a potential source of unfairness.

"The truth of the matter is, tax exemptions are just a redistribution of taxes," Mr. O'Neal said.

And, like the center, Mr. O'Neal pointed out that the state hasn't changed its income-tax brackets in decades. Currently, the state taxes all income above $7,000 a year at 6 percent, a number that hasn't changed since the state began charging the tax in 1937.

"We haven't changed our tax rates in 60 years," Mr. O'Neal said.

Atlanta paper publishes Rubin op-ed

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution today published an op-ed piece offered through the Center for a Better South on income inequality. The author, Vanderbilt Law Dean Ed Rubin, argues that America's compension system is creating income disparities that approach Third World levels:

The theme that should be sounded is that the present distribution of income is simply unfair. Most of the adults in those lower four-fifths, even the ones in the lowest, work for a living, and most work as hard as the people in the top fifth. Our system is tilted against them.

The op-ed was taken from a FIVE QUESTIONS interview by the Center. To read the full, fascinating interview, go to:

• http://www.bettersouth.org/fivequestions

Armadillos in Memphis?

Hot weather is nothing new for those of us in the South. But awareness of global warming is growing here, even among people previously thought to be skeptical. For instance, hunters, fishers and other sportsmen -- conservative on other issues -- are acknowledging the effects of global warming on animal migration patterns and natural habitats.

And now comes another small piece of anecdotal evidence, as related by Jim Hansen in the New York Review of Books:

Recently after appearing on television to discuss climate change, I received an e-mail from a man in northeast Arkansas: "I enjoyed your report on Sixty Minutes and commend your strength. I would like to tell you of an observation I have made. It is the armadillo. I had not seen one of these animals my entire life, until the last ten years. I drive the same forty-mile trip on the same road every day and have slowly watched these critters advance further north every year and they are not stopping. Every year they move several miles."

Armadillos appear to be pretty tough. Their mobility suggests that they have a good chance to keep up with the movement of their climate zone, and to be one of the surviving species. Of course, as they reach the city limits of St. Louis and Chicago, they may not be welcome. And their ingenuity may be taxed as they seek ways to ford rivers and multiple-lane highways.

AIDS drug assistance funding may be increased

North Carolina has long been one of the worst states in the nation at providing assistance to poor people who need to purchase life-saving AIDS drugs. But according to this article, that may be about to change here.

North Carolina currently limits eligibility for its AIDS Drug Assistance Program to those who have annual incomes of no more than 125% of the federal poverty line. This means that those who earn $12,000 per year cannot qualify for assistance in purchasing drugs that cost around $13,000 a year, which makes no sense.

A proposal is gaining steam in N.C. to double the eligibility level (thus bringing the state more in line with its neighbors) and U.S. Sen. Richard Burr is advocating for increased federal money to support North Carolina's ADAP.

The AIDS epidemic is only getting worse for the poor in the South. Here's a chance to begin to at least fund medication for those who are already sick.

Better funding for prevention will be the topic of a future post!

Senate Primary Could Be a Watershed Day for Virginia Democratc and Progressive Bloggers

After a 3-month long primary battle between technology lobbyist Harris Miller and former Reagan Navy Secretary and novelist Jim Webb, Virginia Democrats (and others) head to the polls to pick the man they want to face off with Sen. George Allen in November. With the Commonwealth’s “open primary” and lack of party registration, turnout is hard to predict, though some pundits and observers have settled on a 5% figure. During the 2005 statewide election season, voter turnout for the 4-way Democratic Lt. Gov primary (the only competitive Democratic race) was just 2.62%, compared to near 4% for the Republican races.

This race has been notable for its viciousness with each side hurling insults and charges that have reverberated through the normally genteel intra-party politics of Virginia Democrats. However, with the first seriously competitive Senate nomination race in ten years, a new factor has emerged - the so-called “netroots” - that threatens to shake things up for that party’s future. Powered by bloggers and tech-savvy volunteers, the Webb campaign has adopted a populist stance, fighting in what it claims is the spirit of Andrew Jackson and garnering the support of prominent national Democratic figures such as Sens. Chuck Schumer and John Kerry. His opponent Harris Miller, by no means a stranger to technology after a long-time stint as head of the Information Technology Association of America, has run a more traditional campaign relying on connections to state party officials, paid staff, and heavy self-financing. Miller is running on a platform of continuing in the vein of popular former Gov. Mark Warner and current officeholder Gov. Tim Kaine.

In light of the recent attention that Democratic and progressive bloggers have garnered with the YearlyKos event in Las Vegas, a Webb victory could signal a change in the guard of Virginia’s politics and signal a coming sea change throughout the Southeast as the politics of moonlight and magnolias gives way to Macs and microchips. Given the anti-establishment stridency of the pro-Webb cadre, a Miller victory could close the door to many of the more vocal and creative bloggers who fought for Webb. Regardless of the outcome, Democrats and progressives can ill afford to ignore the prominence of blogging as a medium of political discourse and information.

In the absence of strong talk radio, the blogosphere is the one arena in which the “blue” voices can counteract the rise in the Right. With the midterm elections about to kick into high gear, Democrats and progressives region-wide should take a look at what happens in Virginia to quickly discern lessons learned as the Congressional races head into summer. What they find may surprise them.

How old should kindergarteners be?

Read this article from the Raleigh News & Observer to get an interesting snapshot of the debate over whether four-year-olds are ready for kindergarten.

Progressive public policy advocates have long worked for earlier educational opportunities for at-risk kids. North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley has made his "More At Four" program a centerpiece of his tenure.

But now some progressives fear that some at-risk kids are entering school too early and falling permanently behind due to their immaturity. Not a lot of research supports that hunch, so it remains to be seen whether Southern educational policy begins to reflect this new idea or not.

INTERVIEW: Rubin on education, income inequality

In our June 2006 FIVE QUESTIONS interview, Vanderbilt University Law School Dean Ed Rubin offers a wide-ranging and probing look at education, fear in politics, income inequality and metropolitan government. There's a lot in here to digest, but it promises to be an interesting interview. A sample:

"Progressives need to construct a new political discourse that frames fear-generating issues in a different way, one that points toward thoughtful solutions rather than panicked reactions. This discourse must acknowledge and incorporate people's fears, but condemn reflexive or simplistic solutions to these fears and offer more constructive and creative alternatives."

Read the whole interview | 6/8: Read an op-ed excerpt

South's future tied to education, innovation

The Southern Growth Policies Board, a North Carolina think tank, says the South's future is tied to improving education and fostering a culture of innovation, according to a new report recently cited by the Associated Press:

"Among the report's recommendations are that Southern states encourage public universities to form partnerships with industry, government, federal laboratories and other universities to increase research. Southern states should also do more to encourage industries to move their research and development arms to the region, the report said, noting that many of the states already have recruitment incentives including lower taxes and labor costs than other regions.

"Education officials in the South need to do more to raise awareness of the importance of math and science careers and education, the report said. Again, the report noted a national problem — only half of 2004's high school graduates took four years of math in high school and only a fourth took a course in physics — and said most Southern states lagged behind those numbers."

Federal Marriage Amendment fails

The U.S. Senate this morning rejected the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have enshrined the definition of marriage in the U.S. Constitution as being only between a man and a woman.

Sixty votes were necessary to invoke cloture and proceed to a vote on the matter, but proponents of the measure were not even able to assemble a majority. The cloture motion failed, 49-48.

Among those who prevented the amendment from moving forward were senators from Southern states, where support for such a measure is thought to be strongest. According to the full roll call record:

Alabama: Sessions (R-AL), Yea, Shelby (R-AL), Yea
Arkansas: Lincoln (D-AR), Nay, Pryor (D-AR), Nay
Florida: Martinez (R-FL), Yea, Nelson (D-FL), Nay
Georgia: Chambliss (R-GA), Yea, Isakson (R-GA), Yea
Kentucky: Bunning (R-KY), Yea, McConnell (R-KY), Yea
Louisiana: Landrieu (D-LA), Nay, Vitter (R-LA), Yea
Maryland: Mikulski (D-MD), Nay, Sarbanes (D-MD), Nay
Mississippi: Cochran (R-MS), Yea, Lott (R-MS), Yea
North Carolina: Burr (R-NC), Yea, Dole (R-NC), Yea
South Carolina: DeMint (R-SC), Yea, Graham (R-SC), Yea
Tennessee: Alexander (R-TN), Yea, Frist (R-TN), Yea
Virginia: Allen (R-VA), Yea, Warner (R-VA), Yea
West Virginia: Byrd (D-WV), Yea, Rockefeller (D-WV), Not Voting

Alabama election day

Both the New York Times and Wall Street Journal this morning had front-page stories on control of the U.S. House. Here in Bama on primary election day, the discussion is a little different. None of the incumbent House members appear to be in serious trouble.

However, there is a race going on around here. It's one termed "a battle for the soul of the state GOP" by one political expert.

On one side sit conservative Supreme Court justices. As a group these incumbents are generally unified in a friendly attitude for business.

On the other are Supreme Court candidates for whom the term "conservative" doesn't apply. "Radical" is more apt. They would turn back the clock. Way back. In doing so, they would avenge Roy Moore, who was removed from office for defying a federal court order.

The debate, if you can call it that, is over whether or not to obey the Supreme Court on matters where these radical candidates disagree. Watch some ads if you have the stomach for it.

Feds vs. states ... again. We're back an argument the South has kicked around for more than a century-and-a-half. Seems like this would have been settled at the schoolhouse door once George Wallace stepped aside for federalized troops. Sadly, no.

Two Americas

The Washington Post kicked off a year-long series on Black males with this story in Sunday's edition. The hook of the story is the double consciousness of today's African-American man: he is more optimistic about his chances in America while at the same time disappointed with the unwillingness or inability of his brothers to take advantage of the increased opportunities. This is a well-written piece, but it's really only news to someone who isn't familiar with Black America.

Race rarely enters the public discourse in any fully-formed way. When we do talk about race it is often to show the depravity of drug-infested inner-city culture or to tout the exceptional Black man, a latter-day credit to his race. And probably well-spoken, too. Rarely do we grapple with both sides of the coin. America is in such denial over its persistent race problem that stories like the one in the Post are greeted as a fresh take on the subject when in fact they simply are providing the subtlety that should be brought to bear on an increasingly complicated topic.

The lesson in this for policymakers and politicians is to give us the whole picture of race in America. Yes, it is possible for African-Americans to achieve more now than at virtually any period in the country's history. But those same strivers face the daily specter of humiliation at the hands of the state and a constant struggle against a good ol' boy network that is more interested in perpetuating its existence than finding someone who's capable of getting the job done. That's the reality for African-American men. It's one worth remembering the next time race enters the political discussion.

The long, nasty campaign begins

Dear Think Southers,
I just got a political phone call that is a warning of a brutally ugly future. Alabama is days away from it's primary. The phone has been ringing off the hook with nasty campaign calls. It's all a part of what University of Alabama professor calls "a battle for the soul of the GOP."

Sitting at home this Saturday evening, I was called not about Tuesday's election, but about the one in 2008. The telemarketer said she represented the National Rifle Association. She played a brief message from NRA chief Wayne LaPierre. The central point of the message was: Head for the hills! Hillary Clinton wants to take your handguns. She won't rest until she's got 'em all.

It's a bunch of nonsense. Nothing more than a push poll more than two years ahead of the next presidential election.

Once the message ended, a telemarketer returned to the line and asked for a donation.

What have we learned?

A HRC run for president will not be a pretty thing. Her foes will Swiftboat her like there's no tomorrow. Since 1992, it's taken as gospel that the New York senator and former first lady just scares the pants off the average Southerner. Tonight's call is nothing more than a tell, a tip-off for what we can expect if Sen. Clinton decides to run for president.

Southerners deserve - and should demand - a campaign on the issues. Not just a series of scare tactics.