Georgia Legislative Session 2012

Transportation

The Transportation Investment Act of 2010 should be repealed. It violates city and county sovereignty by creating unelected, unaccountable regional governing entities. It usurps city and county authority and responsibility for roads within its borders. UN Agenda 21 recommends regional governance to sabotage local control and cut voters out of the loop. The ARC final list continues to be a MARTA bail-out. With federal funds for MARTA in question, they see this grant spending binge Obama is on as the last chance to get that Obama-money. Subjecting the 8 surrounding counties to a 1 cent sales tax for the next 10 years based on a vote of the total region is political suicide for the Georgia Legislature. TIA needs to be repealed, the vote cancelled and MARTA sold to private operators. All public transit should be privatized. If we are successful in defeating the TSPLOST in July, what will the legislature do ?

Federal Menace

Federal grants for transportation should be refused because they require us to do stupid things. I hope we are not counting on there being any federal money after 2013. The U.S. Department of Transportation should be abolished along with the U.S. EPA for its obstruction of road maintenance in the name of “clean air”. U.N Agenda 21 implementation should be stopped and reversed and the 1992 Executive Order cancelled. The U.N now plans to tax us for our water in the name of environmentalism and the redistribution of wealth from us to them.

Atlanta Roads

There is a mess to clean up in Atlanta metro. The HOT lanes need to be removed and returned to general use. The PPP contract needs to be terminated. UN Agenda 21 suggests public private partnerships to promote the general chaos. US 29 should be extended to intersect with I-85 and I-75 and identified as an Atlanta by-pass for interstate traffic. I-285 needs another lane in each side. An East to West highway needs to be built to connect Smyrna with Tucker giving us a grid. Leave the cities and counties alone to do the rest by themselves.

The GDOT is a train-wreck. Whoever decided to put stop lights at highway entry ramps should be deported to Haiti. GDOT needs to be a department reporting to the Governor with very limited responsibilities. They could handle the interstate highways if we can close the U.S. Department of Transportation. I would leave everything else to the counties and cities. City and county taxes should be left to handle all expenses. State spending on the interstate should be 20%.

Education

Education has reached its price / demand curve due to over-subsidization by government, regulations and mission-drift. It will be necessary to push the counties to assume more and more financial responsibility for public schools. State tax dollars going to education should be reduced 5 to 10% each year. Bonds should not be used to finance anything. Education soaks up 54.5% of the 2012 budget. College costs are too high and students rely on Sallie Mae student loans they will not be able to repay. This bubble needs to be deflated carefully but steadily.

Healthcare

Healthcare has also reached its price / demand curve due to over-subsidization by government, regulations, the lack of tort reform and gaming the system. Providers are over-due for serious restructuring and cost reduction. Government subsidies should be removed concurrent with the industries’ cost reduction plans. State tax dollars going to healthcare should be reduced 5 to 10% each year.

State Land

Sell off the 210 thousand acres we own and return this land to productive use wherever possible. We shouldn’t own any wildlife preserves, wetlands, timberland or hunting preserves. We should sell these to U.S. citizens only. Proceeds should go to the reserve account. Bonds should not be used to finance anything.

Water

If there is anything the State is responsible for, it’s water. Our water supply is unstable and more and larger reservoirs are needed.

Taxes

Keep income tax rates where they are. Screwing around with taxes will just piss everybody off. Any tax increase on cigarettes will send all smokers to Missouri to by it by the case. Food is already high enough. Everybody is jumping on raising sales taxes. Paychecks will continue to decline, so it is a good idea to cover the losses you can project from lower income tax revenue. Property tax is also a declining entity. Bonds should not be used to finance anything. They make everything cost double, so half of the debt service goes in the paper shredder.

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody Ga Tea Party Leader