| Last month, Omaha Mayor Jim Suttle came out in fierce opposition to State Senator Tom White's bill (LB 952) to protect residents of the Omaha Metro from paying an additional $325 million in sales taxes on the fees they'll already be paying to cover the costs of a multi-billion dollar sewer improvement project mandated by the federal government. At the time, I argued that Suttle needed to take another look at the actual numbers behind this tax, hoping that he'd come to his senses and stop defending a tax that sends $3.67 to the state for every $1.00 received by the city.
No matter how much the city might need that dollar, Suttle should have been able to see that the numbers don't add up and that the city would be better served by practically any other tax or fee that would actually be collected at the local level. Yet, while LB 952 has built momentum, been advanced from the Revenue Commitee, and been named White's priority bill for the 2010 session, Suttle has now doubled-down in his opposition by hiring an additional lobbyist to specifically fight against this legislation.
The Omaha World-Herald reports:
Omaha Mayor Jim Suttle has hired one of the state's most powerful lobbyists to help him defeat a controversial tax exemption bill. Lobbyist Walt Radcliffe of Lincoln submitted papers Tuesday indicating that the city will pay him $5,000 a week, not to exceed $50,000 for the 2010 session....
White...said he "didn't care how many high-priced, high-powered Lincoln lobbyist the mayor hired with taxpayer dollars."
White added that he thought Omaha was "in a budget crisis" that precluded hiring additional lobbyists. Lobbyist Jack Cheloha, who is hired by the Omaha City Council, has worked against passage of White's proposal...
With this latest move, it becomes even harder to fathom what Suttle is thinking and what he is really hoping to gain.
Of course, I understand the defensive posture of wanting to hold onto any potential sources of revenue that aren't new property taxes. It's certainly unfortunate that Suttle found so little cooperation from Governor Dave Heineman and Omaha's State Senators on expanding the city's options for dealing with its many fiscal challenges. I can also empathize with Suttle wanting to contain any hikes in the property tax that might ultimately loom in the distance. But, by working so hard to avoid being the fall guy for a property tax hike over which he may have little control, Suttle is instead positioning himself as the bad guy fighting against hundreds of millions of dollars in tax cuts for his own constituents.
There's a reason that LB 952 has 15 cosponsors - most of them from the Omaha Metro. There's a reason that it received such strong support from the Revenue Commitee. Although the state of Nebraska stands to lose almost four times as much revenue as the city of Omaha, there's also a very good reason why Heineman and his administration have been so much more restrained than Suttle in their own opposition. They understand that the double-tax on these sewer fees is bad policy and even worse politics.
From a progressive standpoint, applying a uniform sales tax to sewer fees based on water usage is incredibly regressive and hits low-income and middle-class families the hardest. Still, Suttle's got his second taxpayer-funded lobbyist leading the charge against LB 952 so these families can continue to pay more taxes to the state and to the city. In paying this mandated sewer fee, families have had no choice and little opportunity for input. Adding an opportunistic sales tax on top of that is indefensible no matter how much Suttle is counting on it to fill the city's budet gap and help him hold the line on property taxes.
LB 952 may come to a first round vote by the Legislature before the end of the week. If Jim Suttle refuses to be reasonable and think about the numbers behind this legislation, he should at least be aware of the message he is sending to voters and the legacy he is leaving as mayor - championing the people of Omaha continuing to pay so much more than their fair share of taxes to the state of Nebraska! |
