Does a State Have the Right to Self-Destruct?

[xchrom]

http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/06/does-a-state-have-the-right-to-self-destruct/276430/



There's a divide in contemporary constitutional theory today: one side sees the Constitution as a tool for self-government, the other as a means of preventing it.

One skirmish in that long war is being fought out in the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver. It presents the question of whether a state's voters can amend its constitution to deprive the legislature permanently of the power to tax. That we are even debating this issue teaches us something about the state of American law and politics; the way it is being debated teaches some interesting lessons about the states, their supposed "rights," and the true scheme of the U.S. Constitution.

Though the far right often talks about their reverence for state governments, another part of their program is disabling state governments from stepping into the void left by the gradual starvation of the federal government.

That's where Kerr v. Hickenlooper comes in. It raises the question of whether a state whose government has no power to tax is a "state" at all within the meaning of the U.S. Constitution. The case is a challenge by a group of taxpayers and state legislators to Colorado's so-called "Taxpayer Bill of Rights," approved by initiative in 1992. TABOR, as it is called, bars any level of state government from raising taxes or tax rates without a referendum. Beyond that, government can't even spend the money it collects under existing taxes if tax collections rise faster than the rate of inflation or population growth. The "excess" revenue must be returned to taxpayers, no matter how dire the state's needs, unless a referendum approves the "tax hike."

[LuvNewcastle]

1. Looks like CO is on its way to privatization of all services.

If the state can't afford to fund the schools, utilities, road maintenance, etc., the next step is for private companies to step in and fill the void. Programs for the poor will be eliminated and the needy will have to depend on handouts from charities, but they won't be able to support that many people. They won't have a health dept. or Medicaid. I know people who want to move to CO because of the legal weed. I think they'd better choose WA instead.

[lumberjack_jeff]

2. The question should be; Do the voters of a state have the right to destroy it?

fundamentally, Colorado's voters have voted to change their form of government.

[Katashi_itto]

3. Yes they do, let them create an Ayn Randian Hellhole