State should cut, not gut, programs

Published: Sunday, June 16, 2013 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, June 14, 2013 at 5:30 p.m.

Republican leaders in the General Assembly say they are doing what the people elected them to do in trimming the state budget and cutting taxes. But legislative proposals to cut funding for some key environmental initiatives are shortsighted, damaging and unpopular.

Most North Carolinians will welcome lower taxes as proposed under a tax reform bill that passed the N.C. House last week. N.C. Rep. Chuck McGrady, R-Hendersonville, called this bill “a major step in the ongoing process of much-needed and long-overdue tax reform.”

“It begins the process of repealing tax loopholes and preferential tax treatment which favor specific industries within the state,” McGrady said. “Under the plan, the working families of North Carolina will see more dollars in their pocket, and our state will become more competitive for job creation.”

Two-thirds of North Carolina tax filers will see an average personal income tax reduction of 20 percent, McGrady said. Americans for Tax Reform predicts the state will go from the seventh worst to the 19th best business tax climate in the nation as a result. But this comes at a cost.

Budget cuts to education and other services have driven weeks of protests at the state capital in Raleigh. Hundreds of residents have been arrested while protesting GOP policies. These policies include cuts to public education and unemployment benefits and refusing to extend the earned-income tax credit, which benefits low- to middle-income wage earners.

Government cannot cut taxes without cutting services, and no one would likely argue that there is no room for savings within the state’s budget, which topped $20 billion this year. But GOP leaders should take care not to undermine efforts to protect the environment. Unfortunately, several proposals now before the Legislature would do that.

Following the Senate’s lead, the House is proposing in its draft budget to combine the state’s Natural Heritage Trust Fund and Clean Water Management Trust Fund. The merged fund would increase spending on wastewater and stormwater projects but would cap expenditures for buying new lands at $4 million per year. That could slow efforts to buy and protect 8,000 acres owned by former U.S. Rep. Charles Taylor along the East Fork of the French Broad River in Transylvania County.

The N.C. Forest Service and its conservation partners hope to buy 5,895 acres over the next three to five years to complete what will be known as Headwaters State Forest. Capping funds for land acquisition at $4 million, as proposed by Rep. Roger West, R-Cherokee, will set back those efforts.

“We have over $20 million still to raise and if the whole state has only $4 million, that makes it pretty tough,” said Kieran Roe, executive director of the Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy. To put it in perspective, the Clean Water Management Trust Fund in the past had as much as $50 million per year to buy environmentally important lands.

Another proposed cut that would have environmental repercussions is the Senate plan to slash funding for the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission almost in half, from this year’s allocation of $18.5 million to $9.5 million. The threatened cuts have stalled plans by the agency to build new boat ramps, fishing piers and paddler access points along the local section of the French Broad River, all of which would help boost the economy.

Cutting the agency’s budget in half would affect operations of the state’s six fish hatcheries, including the Bobby N. Setzer Fish Hatchery in Pisgah National Forest, and its four education centers, including the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education. It would also harm the agency’s ability to enforce wildlife and boating safety laws.

The N.C. House budget also proposes to trim the agency’s budget, but not nearly so drastically, cutting $4 million in 2013-14 but allocating $16 million in 2014-15, said Dick Hamilton, coordinator for the N.C. Wildlife Federation’s Camo Coalition, an outreach program for sportsmen. Members of the Camo Coalition have been lobbying against deep cuts to the wildlife agency, arguing they would harm opportunities for hunting, fishing and other wildlife-related pursuits that generate $3.3 billion each year.

It’s clear that GOP leaders are going to cut taxes, and they can’t do that without affecting services and programs. But there is room to make cuts without resorting to draconian measures that will undermine the environment upon which our economy depends.

<p>Republican leaders in the General Assembly say they are doing what the people elected them to do in trimming the state budget and cutting taxes. But legislative proposals to cut funding for some key environmental initiatives are shortsighted, damaging and unpopular.</p><p>Most North Carolinians will welcome lower taxes as proposed under a tax reform bill that passed the N.C. House last week. N.C. Rep. Chuck McGrady, R-Hendersonville, called this bill a major step in the ongoing process of much-needed and long-overdue tax reform.</p><p>It begins the process of repealing tax loopholes and preferential tax treatment which favor specific industries within the state, McGrady said. Under the plan, the working families of North Carolina will see more dollars in their pocket, and our state will become more competitive for job creation.</p><p>Two-thirds of North Carolina tax filers will see an average personal income tax reduction of 20 percent, McGrady said. Americans for Tax Reform predicts the state will go from the seventh worst to the 19th best business tax climate in the nation as a result. But this comes at a cost.</p><p>Budget cuts to education and other services have driven weeks of protests at the state capital in Raleigh. Hundreds of residents have been arrested while protesting GOP policies. These policies include cuts to public education and unemployment benefits and refusing to extend the earned-income tax credit, which benefits low- to middle-income wage earners.</p><p>Government cannot cut taxes without cutting services, and no one would likely argue that there is no room for savings within the state’s budget, which topped $20 billion this year. But GOP leaders should take care not to undermine efforts to protect the environment. Unfortunately, several proposals now before the Legislature would do that.</p><p>Following the Senate’s lead, the House is proposing in its draft budget to combine the state’s Natural Heritage Trust Fund and Clean Water Management Trust Fund. The merged fund would increase spending on wastewater and stormwater projects but would cap expenditures for buying new lands at $4 million per year. That could slow efforts to buy and protect 8,000 acres owned by former U.S. Rep. Charles Taylor along the East Fork of the French Broad River in Transylvania County.</p><p>The N.C. Forest Service and its conservation partners hope to buy 5,895 acres over the next three to five years to complete what will be known as Headwaters State Forest. Capping funds for land acquisition at $4 million, as proposed by Rep. Roger West, R-Cherokee, will set back those efforts.</p><p>We have over $20 million still to raise and if the whole state has only $4 million, that makes it pretty tough, said Kieran Roe, executive director of the Carolina Mountain Land Conservancy. To put it in perspective, the Clean Water Management Trust Fund in the past had as much as $50 million per year to buy environmentally important lands.</p><p>Another proposed cut that would have environmental repercussions is the Senate plan to slash funding for the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission almost in half, from this year’s allocation of $18.5 million to $9.5 million. The threatened cuts have stalled plans by the agency to build new boat ramps, fishing piers and paddler access points along the local section of the French Broad River, all of which would help boost the economy.</p><p>Cutting the agency’s budget in half would affect operations of the state’s six fish hatcheries, including the Bobby N. Setzer Fish Hatchery in Pisgah National Forest, and its four education centers, including the Pisgah Center for Wildlife Education. It would also harm the agency’s ability to enforce wildlife and boating safety laws.</p><p>The N.C. House budget also proposes to trim the agency’s budget, but not nearly so drastically, cutting $4 million in 2013-14 but allocating $16 million in 2014-15, said Dick Hamilton, coordinator for the N.C. Wildlife Federation’s Camo Coalition, an outreach program for sportsmen. Members of the Camo Coalition have been lobbying against deep cuts to the wildlife agency, arguing they would harm opportunities for hunting, fishing and other wildlife-related pursuits that generate $3.3 billion each year.</p><p>It’s clear that GOP leaders are going to cut taxes, and they can’t do that without affecting services and programs. But there is room to make cuts without resorting to draconian measures that will undermine the environment upon which our economy depends.</p>