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Show Arguments for Proposition 4 will reduce the tax burden on Utahns! Our constitution provides for a State School Fund to help pay for public education. Only the interest from the fund can be spent. The State School Fund is presently very small. Interest from the fund pays only 2 percent of the cost of public education. That figure is low because the constitution limits the revenues which go to the State School Fund. The State School Funds major source of revenue is the sale of state school lands. Revenue from the use of these same lands, such as mineral and timber rights, does not go to the State School Fund. Instead, this money goes to pay current operating expenses for the public schools. Proposition 4 will transfer some of this money which presently goes to general education funds, to the State Shool Fund. As a result, the State School Fund will increase substantially each year. As the fund grows, the interest payments will increase. Eventually, interest from the fund could pay a major part of state education expenses. resource money is being spent with no though for the future! Much of the revenue from school lands comes from resources that cannot be replaced. These include oil, gas, and other minerals. Once these assets are extracted, their revenue potential is gone forever. We are now using these important resources for our own advantage, with no thought for the future. The money is used to pay for current public school operating expenses. This is unthinkable! As these resources are used up, the revenues they provide will have to be replaced by increased taxes! Proposition 4 ensures that proceeds from non renewable resources will be saved for current and future generations of taxpayers! We must save for the future! It is a fact of life that to get ahead, we must save for the future. No one gets anywhere by spending everything. Proposition 4 will help Utah save for its childrens future! Proposition 4 will protect significant revenues for the State School Fund! Proposition 4 will constitutionally protect major revenues for the State School Fund. Funding decisions made by statute may be changed by the legislature. Political pressures may alter the fund. Proposition 4 permanently protects the State School Fund as a major source of education funding! Proposition 4 will gradually transfer revenues to avoid budget problems! If the money coming from nonrenewable resources were transferred immediately into the State School Fund, it could seriously affect the states budget. Under Proposition 4, the transfer of revenues will not take place until 1987. This plan will give state government time to make a smooth transition. Proposition 4 will allow for a portion of the money to be transferred each year until the full amount has been moved. Vote FOR Proposition 4 for the sake of lower taxes and current and future generations! Senator K.S. Cornaby Senate Majority Leader 3794 Hermes Drive Salt Lake City, Utah 84124 Representative Ervin Salt M. Skousen 3316 Metro Way Lake City, Utah 84109 Rebuttal to Arguments in favor of Proposition No. 4 We cannot afford to pass Proposition 4! Proposition 4 would take $7.0 million away from the revenues that can be used for educations immediate, pressing needs. In order to continue funding education at present levels, $7.0 million would have to be supplied from other sources, such as taxes. These revenues would be locked into a trust fund that might or might not grow into a significant funding source in the future. At a time when many areas of education are critically underfunded, this is unwise! Proponents of Proposition 4 will claim that since the state has a surplus this year, the money would be set aside without raising taxes. Even with a surplus, though, there are many areas of greater importance than locking revenues into the State School Fund. By passing this amendment, we will be taking money away from some urgent need! Proposition 4 limits the power of the legislature to wisely allocate money! To ensure that the best possible decisions are made about how to spend the states money, the legislature should be allowed to allocate money as needed. Funding needs vary from year to year. Only the legislature has the power to adjust funding as appropriate. Dedicating revenues in the constitution limits the legislatures ability to apportion revenues wisely! Proposition 4 is an unwise amendment to the constitution! VOTE AGAINST PROPOSITION 4! Senator Wilford R. Black Senate Minority Leader 826 North 1300 West Salt Lake City, Utah 84116 |