A bill limiting the amount of revenue Florida can take in may seem odd in a year when Florida has a $3.6 billion deficit, but the bills sponsor, Sen. Ellyn Bogdanoff, R-Fort Lauderdale, says now is the perfect time for such a measure.
This is an opportunity for us to be proactive and to show self-restraint, Bogdanoff said Wednesday during a Senate Budget Committee meeting.
The bill, known as smart cap, would place a constitutional amendment before voters in 2012 that would set limits on Floridas revenues by tying them to population growth and inflation. The measure would not take effect until the 2014-2015 fiscal year. It passed through the committee along partisan lines, with all six Democrats on the 20-member committee voting against the bill.
Even some supporters of the bill expressed concerns over how the measure would affect the states bond rating, saying that rating agencies could downgrade the status of Floridas bonds, making future borrowing more expensive.
I can tell you that Wall Street is not going to look favorably on Florida if that is included, said Sen. Gwen Margolis, D-Aventura.
Other critics noted that Floridas taxes are already relatively low compared to other states and contended that a revenue cap is not needed because one already exists in the state Constitution.
Clearly the Florida Legislature has the ability to make us a low-tax state without another revenue limitation, said Rich Templin, communications director of the Florida AFL-CIO.
Supporters of the bill say the current cap is ineffective and doesnt go far enough, and that spending and borrowing more money wont help the states bond rating, either.
I think the only way our bond rating could be hurt is if we continue to finance our spending with borrowing, Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, said.
Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, is also a backer of the bill, which is also known as the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, or TABOR. He said that provisions allowing for supermajorities to override the revenue caps mean the measure would not unduly tie the hands of future legislators.
Theres flexibility with the bill that if you have a supermajority you can do something there, Haridopolos said.
Still, some senators were jittery about the bill in a year where cuts to education, Medicaid and other services are being made to fill the states budget hole.
I also have concerns about it in terms of education. Were already having trouble funding education, said Sen. Evelyn Lynn, R-Ormond Beach.
The bill is next scheduled to be taken up Thursday by the Rules Committee for its final committee stop in the Senate.
Reach Gray Rohrer at grohrer@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
