HOW MUCH CASH CAN WE SAVE PALMETTO STATE TAXPAYERS?
Politicians in South Carolina love to talk about how they create “savings” in government. There’s only one problem: In the Palmetto State, there’s no such thing as “government savings.”
For the past two years (here and here), the “Republican-controlled” S.C. State Senate has refused to create a “taxpayer rebate fund” that would route savings (and surplus government revenues) back to taxpayers. As a result any money “saved” by government winds up getting spent someplace else in government.
How “Republican” of them right? Anyway, we’ve had enough of this charade. And we suspect we’re not the only ones. So this year we’re not only endorsing the creation of the “taxpayer rebate fund” (as championed by State Sen. Tom Davis) we’re providing specific examples of funding items that ought to be placed into it.
To learn more about each item, click on the individual dollar amounts below …
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*$46 million – (program savings proposed 1/8/2013 by Catherine Templeton, S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control)
*$13 million – (elimination of sales tax exemption for newspaper industry)
*$13 million (elimination of FY 2013-14 funding for S.C. Department of Agriculture)
*$10.5 million – (elimination of FY 2013-14 funding for Patriots Point naval museum)
*$2 million – (administrative savings proposed 1/4/2013 by Catherine Templeton, S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control)
*$300,000 – (elimination of funding for “New Carolina”)
TOTAL: $84.8 million (as of 3/11/2013)
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Wanna help us grow that pile?
If you’ve got an unnecessary spending item you think we should be designated for the taxpayer rebate fund – email us here with your suggestion. We’ll be updating this list every time a South Carolina politician or bureaucrat announces or proposes “savings,” and will also be updating it when specific non-core budget appropriations are proposed.
Furthermore, we’ll be pushing lawmakers in Columbia, S.C. to vote on the record regarding each one of these “savings” items – in effect forcing them to choose between spending that money or sending it back to you.
We hope you will join us in this little exercise in accountability. After all it’s our money – let’s take it back!
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11 comments
If the Republicans do not offer state sponsored casino gambling, Harpootlian will and in effect, a quorum in 2016 will electrify their base to put in “yes vote” legislators to amend the constitution for voters to decide in 2018. This will also coincide with a Gov/Lt Gov ticket. This issue could take power away from the GOP for the next 20 years unless the GOP gets in first. Your rebate fund is worthless in the face of another recession.
I wish they allowed voters to decide on more issues, it is obvious the legislators do not have the ability to make these decision, if they did our state wouldn’t be in such a mess.
Whether we actually get a rebate or not, I support the idea of drawing attention to wasteful spending, and “updating this list every time a South Carolina politician or bureaucrat announces or proposes “savings,” and will also be updating it when specific non-core budget appropriations are proposed.” If we don’t hold them accountable – then who?
Oh Damn. Man you nailed it Thomas. Like JIm Hodges and Lottery, school bus yellow bumper stickers and all…
so far, assuming we give this money out in rebates to everyone in a non weighted system so as to not account for how much you paid in in the first place, we are up to about 10 bucks per tax payer. I will use my ten dollars to buy lottery tickets.
@ICOMMUTE….If that $10 makes you a winner are you going to give FITNEWS a cut? ;)
Don’t forget to take into account the cost of printing and mailing checks, plus working costs to formulate the rebate list and amount (which only gets worse if all of this shit is weighted).
Why don’t the state and federal gubmints sell off some of the trillions of dollars of forest lands to cut down some of the interest payments on the debt?
Sic Willie,
and the details of your rebate plan are??????? Still waiting.
Part of the “rebate” given to the newspaper industry is the sales tax on newspapers.
So to “save” taxpayers money, you propose an increase in the cost of newspapers, therefore costing taxpayers more money.
It would be the only tax levied on public information in the state. Are you willing to have your site taxed in a proportionate manner? Fair’s fair, right?
“As championed by Tom Davis”. Name one fucking thing he has accomplished. Let me save you some time. Not one damn thing.
SC can save approximately $200 million a year by doing away with the pension investment commission and index the funds. This is no joke just call any broker and ask them.
retirees unite and take back OUR money.