President
Reagan once said, regarding the legislative branch, that you couldn't
make them see the light, but you could make them feel the heat.
A
very good example of that occurred this past week but first, some
background. Last May, the Republican dominated legislature was
looking for a way to fill an $800+ million budget hole
brought on by a fall in energy prices and tax cuts. The tax cuts
passed a few years ago were a good thing. Too bad state spending was
not cut as well.
My state representative Mark Lepak voted for the cigarette tax last year and this year. So when the cigarette tax came up last May, I called Mark Lepak and told him I hoped he'd vote against it and if he didn't, I'd run against him. He voted for the cigarette tax, called a 'fee,' and now I'm running against Mark Lepak.
Democrats are needed to pass a new tax, but they want a new tax on oil and gas production. The Republican leadership has agreed to a four percentage hike to get Democrats on board. On Thursday, I got a call from a woman with a script from the oil and gas industry asking me if I opposed this tax. I responded that I did. She then asked if I would like to speak with my representative. I said I would. I was transferred to the state capitol switchboard and asked to speak with Mark Lepak. I was put on hold where I listened to the state song Oklahoma! Then I was sent to Mark's voice mail. I said;
“Mark, I hope you will vote against the gross production tax today. Otherwise, I'm sure I could get the oil and gas industry to contribute to my campaign.”
I didn't leave my name, he knows who I am. Anyway, later in the day he voted against the compromise gross production tax the Democrats needed to bring on board for a cigarette tax.
One person can make a difference.
Governor
Fallin wanted a cigarette tax and is determined to get it. She is
militantly anti-tobacco going so far as to ban smoking and vaping on
state property. She's vetoed Pro-Life and Pro-Gun bills because both
are not her core issues. Tobacco is what she is motivated against
having lost her parents to smoking. So when the state needed money
Governor Fallin proposed a series of taxes on everything, but her
goal was to get a $1.50 cigarette tax. She proposed one last year,
but it failed. When I asked about his vote, Lepak told me he believed a cigarette tax hike would discourage youth
smoking. I take a different view, a youth reaches majority at 18 and
can vote, sign a legally binding contract, be charged as an adult for
a crime, get married (same thing as being charged as an adult, just
kidding) and join the military. It isn't the state's job to
discourage them from smoking.
As
you all know, the state Supreme Court ruled the cigarette fee was
unconstitutional and so the legislature is back for a special session
to fix the mess they created. A super-majority of 75% is necessary
to raise taxes, hence the cigarette 'fee” passed by a simple
majority in late May was later struck down by the court.
It
must be noted that the state Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust
(TSET) has more than a billion dollars in the bank, none of it goes
towards healthcare. They run ads right now telling you what bastards
the tobacco companies are and pay for billboards telling you to drink
water. TSET could, if the board chose, send several millions to the
state to help plug the deficit, but they won't share.
