Analysis: GOP toes party line on taxes

State Republican lawmakers have a long history of resisting taxes, and this year is no different.

Even before Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger calls a planned special session to deal with the state's "fiscal emergency," GOP legislators say they have ruled out revenue increases as a potential remedy. They're not joking: All but one GOP member in the Capitol has signed a no-tax pledge.

It's said "an elephant never forgets," and the Republicans whose party is symbolized by that pachyderm remember tax increases as hurting the economy – and their own political fortunes.

"It's such a strong plank of the Republican platform that anybody who deviates or is perceived to deviate from that will have a hard time running for higher office or perhaps re-election," said Jon Coupal, president of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association.

Schwarzenegger has long toed his party's line against new taxes but recently agreed to ask voters to raise tobacco taxes to help pay for health care changes that would cover more of the uninsured.

Even if Schwarzenegger were open to tax increases to help close the projected $14 billion budget deficit, however, his fellow Republicans in the Legislature aren't likely to go along. They've denounced suggestions by Democrats who have said it's time to consider additional levies.

And though Republicans are the minority party in both legislative chambers, their votes are needed to pass a spending plan under the state's two-thirds budget vote requirement.

Their caucuses have battled time and again over the years with Democrats and governors who sought to add increased revenue to the budget-balancing mix.

In 1991, then-Gov. Pete Wilson threatened to "break arms" in forcing a handful of Republicans to vote for a package that contained a combination of tax increases and spending cuts.

Wilson later said the package, which included a 1.25 percent sales tax increase, was a mistake. Coupal said it hurt, rather than spurred, a California economy that was in recession in the early '90s.

"What happened in '91 was that it didn't get the revenue they projected because the tax increases had the effect of further slowing the economy," Coupal said. "And I think that's the biggest reason you will see a hardening of position (among Republicans)."

Caucus leaders have been known to exert political pressure on members when taxes are being considered in Sacramento. During the 2003 budget debate, when the state faced a $38.2 billion shortfall, Senate Republican leader Jim Brulte told lawmakers of his party that he would campaign against anyone who joined Democrats in voting for tax hikes.

Brulte said he would go to the districts of party defectors to debate them and held a sample of a direct mail advertisement that could be sent to voters. The year ended in more borrowing as Republicans got more money for their pet causes, including rural sheriffs and airport security, in exchange for their votes.

Republican lawmakers say there's pressure from outside the Capitol as well. As a "Proposition 13 baby" who was among a wave of Republicans installed into office for their tax-revolt mantra, former Assemblyman Bill Leonard said the voters put them in office to fight taxes.

"They watch what their legislators do," said Leonard, now a member of the Board of Equalization, the state's tax regulatory body.

During the start of Gov. Gray Davis' administration, four Assembly Republicans broke the impasse by voting for the 2001 budget, which permitted reinstatement of a quarter-cent sales tax if certain fiscal conditions were met.

A year later, two Assembly members – Mike Briggs of Fresno and Richard Dickerson of Redding – were defeated in Republican primaries after being branded as tax-raisers. The other two – Anthony Pescetti of Rancho Cordova and David Kelley of Idyllwild – did not seek re-election.

Pescetti said his decision had nothing to do with potential retribution from Republicans. The 2001 budget contained nearly $7.5 million for projects in his district.

"Republicans who voted for tax increases have been beat," said Pescetti, who still maintains that his vote didn't raise any new taxes. "I never felt ostracized or booted out. I know many of my colleagues weren't happy, but I was doing what I thought was right."

Last week, a new Field Poll found 48 percent of likely California voters – less than half – think addressing the current budget shortfall will require new taxes. Nearly six in 10 respondents said state and local taxes are too high.

Fiscal conservatives at the Capitol say the state's appetite for spending is the result of poor political leadership, which has driven the fiscal situation into its current crisis. California is projected to face a $14 billion deficit, or more than 10 percent of its general fund, when Schwarzenegger unveils his proposed spending plan next month.

Sen. Tom McClintock, R-Thousand Oaks, said Schwarzenegger has done nothing to rein in spending, as he pledged on the campaign trail. In fact, McClintock, who lost to the governor in the wake of Davis' recall, accused Schwarzenegger of increasing "spending at a faster rate than Davis."

McClintock criticized the governor's call for a fiscal emergency as "window dressing," saying he and fellow Republicans have been warning Schwarzenegger and Democrats about the severity of the situation for some time. During last summer's budget standoff, McClintock laid out $3 billion worth of cuts, including a proposal to outsource 50,000 prison beds with potential savings of $19,000 per inmate a year.

He said such action would have prevented the administration from taking drastic measures such as the proposed early release of 20,000 nonviolent offenders.

"This is the unnecessary crisis," said McClintock, who has not voted for the budget since George Deukmejian was governor in the 1980s. "The years of warning were ignored. We've had three years to bring the operational spending in line, and it was squandered."

About the writer:

• Call Judy Lin, Bee Capitol Bureau, (916) 321-1115.