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Jan. 10, 2001 This is an election year, and the state is short of money. Those are the central facts facing the Legislature. The result should be a session quite different from last year’s. Whether it will be more productive, however, is another matter. Last year, growth was the No. 1 issue facing state government, and little was done about it. This year, politics and the budget may well combine to limit our lawmakers to 120 days of bickering. Our representatives in Denver, Rep. Mark Larson and Sen. Jim Isgar, have ideas about real issues. Among them are hate crimes, tourism and agricultural concerns. Presumably there are others in the Legislature who would also like to accomplish something this session. There is little indication, however, that party leaders and the political climate will allow them to make progress. Wednesday morning did little to discourage that assessment. On the first day of the session Senate President Stan Matsunaka, who is running for governor, gave an opening address that sounded like someone running for governor. "Our quality of life," he said, "suffers from traffic and congestion. Our open spaces and mountain vistas lack the protection they deserve. And most seriously, too many of our families face the anxiety of economic recession, the uncertainty of a health care system in crises." "The Colorado dream," Matsunaka said "is in danger." The Speaker of the House, Rep. Doug Dean, opened that chamber in an equally unenlightening fashion. As The Associated Press put it, Dean "paid tribute in his remarks to Coloradans who became heroes after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks." That is a noble sentiment, to be sure, but one that does little to suggest a legislative agenda. Meanwhile, lawmakers were introducing bills proposing tax breaks for Sept. 11 victims, a ban on human cloning and schemes for congressional redistricting. Such is the danger of a politically charged, and fiscally strapped, Legislature. Tax cuts for the victims of terrorism are no doubt well-meant, but given the outpouring of charitable donations targeted for the victims of Sept. 11 they may also be unnecessary. Besides, how many are in Colorado? Then there is redistricting — probably the most nakedly political process in government. It will almost certainly do nothing to benefit individual Coloradans as taxpayers, as voters or as residents of the state. Human cloning is simply irrelevant. It is not now possible, may never be, is unlikely to be attempted any time soon, and will almost certainly by addressed by Congress. Legislating on human cloning at the state level now is an exercise in silliness. But that is what we can expect from a Legislature with no money for programs or tax cuts, and no time for anything but politics.
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Copyright © 2001 the Cortez
Journal. All rights reserved. |
