Too Little Or Too Much?

State Can Avoid Cuts By Educating The Public About Vital Services

But these sites are no match for our neighboring state's "Virginia Performs" scorecard. It shows, for example, Virginia's rates and trends for business startups, prisoner recidivism, infant mortality and educational attainment, among other concerns. If Maryland citizens were better informed about these and other concerns, then they would have a better basis for suggesting budgetary priorities for the state.

Maryland does provide some information about how its programs are performing, but in formats that are far from user-friendly. While the budget includes much performance data, they are very difficult to understand and often not clearly connected to state priorities. Similarly, the voluminous data on the StateStat Web site lacks analysis that explains basic performance trends to the average citizen. Converting these documents to a format that citizens can readily access could help convince them to accept higher taxes to address critical problems. It would also help them better identify spending that is not working and which could be eliminated.

Finally, the state needs a better process for considering tax legislation. Like the federal tax code, the state code is cluttered with special exceptions. But the state does not subject these to the scrutiny given to spending programs. For example, a biennially required report on tax breaks is not even available on the Web. Eliminating some of these preferences would produce "base-broadening" savings, reducing the need to raise tax rates.

The best approach to reforming the state's tax code would be to appoint a tax reform commission. It could engage the public in a discussion of how to generate sufficient revenues through a fairer and more efficient tax system.

Roy T. Meyers is professor of political science and director of the Sondheim Public Affairs Scholars Program at UMBC. His e-mail is [e-mail].