Lessons From California
Remember how you were told that an income tax would be a more reliable source of revenue for the state of Tennessee? Consider the lessons of California, says Orlando Sentinel columnist Peter A. Brown.

California's political leaders have been living in a financial fantasy land. Not only did they spend like drunken sailors, but they assumed that the bar would never close. California's economy would be among the world's six largest if it were a nation. It faces a projected budget deficit of almost $35 billion in the next 18 months. To put that in perspective, California's government spends about a sixth of the total outlays by states nationally, yet its deficit is more than a third of the total of the other 49 states.

All states now face tough times, but California's per-capita deficit dwarfs the others. Other mega-states, such as Florida and Texas, with less-generous government programs, proportionately smaller work forces and no income tax, are much better off. Their income is based on sales taxes, which might not be progressive, but their revenues have been more reliable.

That has certainly been true in Tennessee, which would now be suffering a major fiscal crisis rather than a minor revenue shortfall if the state had adopted an income tax three years ago, as the governor wanted.