The Reflecting Pool

It took over two years, but they managed, line by line, to pound out a comprehensive statement of how the federal deficit should be reduced and ultimately eliminated. It wasn't a parochial, self-interested polemic about why state programs should be protected while all the other components of the federal budget should be scrutinized. Rather, it said everything should be on the table. Everything meant everything—domestic programs, entitlements, military spending, even the big T word, taxes. There were fights about almost all of it. Veterans groups almost killed it at one point because they were worried about how military pensions would be affected. Farm groups didn't like it because of their commitment to commodity programs.

Adoption of the statement at the 1990 Annual Meeting in Nashville was a defining moment for NCSL's work with the national government. It gave us credibility and integrity and added to our stature in the intergovernmental community. It imposed restraint on us at budget time. It allowed us to say with pride that we—state legislatures, that is—didn't just have our hands out. It let us say to members of Congress that we understood their budget dilemmas, that we were reasonable and responsible.

Both organizations argue strongly that actions states have to take to balance their budgets will have the effect of deepening and prolonging the downturn. Both NCSL and NGA point out that the business depreciation provisions of the bill the House passed last week will exacerbate state budget problems by reducing revenues for states that couple their corporate tax provisions to the federal code. Both have had meetings with Speaker Nancy Pelosi's staff, White House officials and several U.S. Senators, but have not made much headway. Both worked with West Virginia Senator Jay Rockefeller, who prepared an amendment for consideration in the Senate Finance Committee. We persuaded 30 senators to sign onto a letter supporting Senator Rockefeller's amendment. Despite this strong support from his colleagues, Senator Rockefeller deferred to the wishes of the Senate Finance Chair, Montana Senator Max Baucus, and decided not to offer the amendment during the mark-up.

There are two primary reasons why legislators and governors have not had success with their packages. One is the reluctance of Senate leadership to push their stimulus bill too far beyond the parameters established by Speaker Pelosi, House Minority Leader John Boehner and President Bush in their negotiations two weeks ago. The Senate leaders are trying to say "no" to as much as they can so the bill the Senate approves can pass muster with the House and the administration. The other is that, as bad as the economy appears to be, the effects of the downturn are still spotty. Some states are in really bad shape; others are showing substantial budget surpluses. Although that's good news for states with bright budget pictures, it makes it harder to persuade 60 U.S. senators that state assistance should be part of the bill.

All is not totally bleak, though. The Senate stimulus bill currently includes two provisions that would be helpful to states. One would temporarily extend unemployment benefits. The other would add $1 billion in low-income energy assistance funds. In addition, there continue to be rumors of the possibility of a second stimulus bill, which would come up later this year. That second bill might be the vehicle that legislators and governors need to pass their discretionary grant and Medicaid match rate package.

A few days later, NCSL's President, Delaware Representative Donna Stone, got a call from Speaker Pelosi's office asking her to join Senator Van de Putte and the speaker's other guests in the House gallery for the president's address. How long do you think it took for Representative Stone to say, "I'd be honored?"

All of this was unprecedented. It was unprecedented to have a state legislator give a nationally-televised response to a State of the Union address. It was unprecedented to have an NCSL officer, not to mention two NCSL officers, sit in the gallery for the State of the Union. Needless to say, both Senator Van de Putte and Representative Stone were unprecedentedly thrilled. Afterwards, they talked about being impressed with the grandeur of the occasion and they remarked on the many subplots taking place on the House floor—mostly involving celebrity senators. They counted the hugs they got from Speaker Pelosi—six, by the way. They said, too, that, although they felt honored by the invitation, it really was a recognition of the importance of state legislatures in the federal system. Hear, hear.