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Tuesday, February 14, 2012

ALEC's Supermajority Act: Increases the power of extremists and special interests

Was doing some research on the status of the Minnesota vote on enacting the supermajority act that is pushed by the American Legislative Exchange Council and  I found this article.




CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire's Senate is voting whether to require a supermajority vote to borrow money and raise state taxes.

The vote Wednesday on a proposed constitutional amendment would require 60 percent of lawmakers to vote in favor of bills to borrow or raise taxes.


So - New Hampshire to vote on ALEC’s Supermajority Act.


Check out snips from >>this report<< on supermajority acts:
  • Supermajority rules reduce accountability by protecting special interest tax breaks.
  • Supermajority rules shift costs from some state residents to others.
  • Supermajority rules may raise state spending or dissuade states from making capital investments by increasing interest rates.
  • Supermajority rules make it harder to finance transportation investments.
  • Supermajority rules limit budget options available to legislators and increase the chances that recessions will be deeper and longer.
  • Supermajority rules increase the power of extremists and special interests

Supermajority rules protect tax loopholes and other narrowly targeted tax breaks.  This is because eliminating a tax deduction, credit, exemption, or other special rule is typically governed by supermajority rules, on the grounds that it raises taxes on at least one corporation or individual.[4]  State tax codes are riddled with such tax breaks, some of which are effective and some of which are not.[5]  Often, tax breaks make state tax systems less level and more imbalanced.  Narrowly tailored tax breaks are part of the reason why the average profitable Fortune 500 Corporation pays less than half the statutory state tax rate and many profitable corporations pay nothing at all.

ALEC and Grover Norquist say this in the summary of  ALEC's super majority act
Super-majority requirements are based on the premise that tax increases fuel excessive government spending. Therefore, to more effectively control the budgetary process, the ability to raise taxes or enact new taxes should be made as politically difficult as possible, require broad consensus, and be held to a high standard of accountability. This Act calls for a constitutional provision requiring all tax and license fee impositions and increases to be approved by two-thirds of all members of each House. It provides for an exemption if there are insufficient revenues to pay interest on the state's debt.
But the reality of a super majority act is much nastier than it initially appears.

Looks like the people who win are the corporations and the 1%.
Why are we not surprised.?



ALEC members and those affiliated with ALEC in any manner
MUST NOT BE RE-ELECTED or receive our support in any means or manner!

Without state and federal legislators ALEC will cease to exist and it will implode.

For more information on ALEC –
Please read this or this or this

This is what ALEC is About  - An Interview with Mark Pocan about the ALEC Annual Meeting.

And watch this news video  from North Carolina on how other ALEC "model legislation" is going to screw the citizens of North Carolina - legislation introduced by ALEC legislators.

Do your own "act of education" at your local precinct caucus.
Distribute materials about ALEC.
Submit a resolution against ALEC.

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