Our View: Tax hike or tax reform?

The bipartisan commission created last week by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger can fix a problem, or inflict more pain. Another government study on collecting and spending taxpayers' money probably is superfluous, given a number of prior studies of state financing.

But Gov. Schwarzenegger says this commission will determine how to avoid the "budget rollercoaster" caused by a disproportionate reliance on personal income taxes, which dramatically ebb and flow with swings in the economy and stock market.

A predictable, stable revenue stream is good. It makes planning easier, and avoids management by crisis such as having too little cash to pay routine bills, which the state has experienced.

However, we're concerned the commission won't seek to merely even out the flow of taxpayers' money into the state treasury from year to year. It could use this opportunity to call for drastically increasing the overall tax burden.

The governor blames the looming $10 billion budget deficit on reduced revenue, which is an excuse he also used for last year's huge deficit. What he means is, "less revenue than hoped for." It's the Legislature's and governor's appetites for spending that aren't being met. Californians' tax burden remains robust and indeed has increased even more every year of Mr. Schwarzenegger's administration than it had for decades. State revenue increased from $76 billion in 2003-04 to $103 billion last year.

If spending had not so outrageously increased, the money coming in today would be more than adequate to pay the bills, even with great fluctuations in income taxes stemming from the wild swings of the economy and Wall Street.

We urge the governor to appoint reasoned voices that understand state budget picture — such as from think tanks such as the Rose Institute of State and Local Government and Reason Foundation, and universities — not advocates for further taxing the public and bailing out Sacramento's spendthrifts. The commission's recommendations are due April 15, the same day taxpayers cough up another installment to feed their bloated, overspending state government. We hope the commissioners don't merely add to the bill.