Local bailout could hit April ballot

With the national economy in a tailspin, some Colorado Springs leaders are saying now is a crucial time to invest tax money in attracting more jobs to the region and helping companies that are already here.
Other leaders argue the timing couldn't be worse for letting government extend its reach and meddle in private business decisions.
Voters might get a chance to decide who's right in the April 7 election.
A citizen committee appointed by the Colorado Springs City Council recommended last week a ballot measure that would let the city keep a property tax scheduled to expire at the end of the year. The estimated $3 million the tax generates would create a "Job Opportunity and Business Sustainability Fund," which the city government would use to boost the economy. Specifics haven't been worked out of who would get the money and how.
The idea has been somewhat overshadowed amid hot discussions during the past week about another possible ballot measure, repealing the city's Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. But advocates on all sides say an expanded government role in promoting economic development deserves close examination. The City Council will decide later whether to put the measure on the ballot.
The Sustainable Funding Committee floated the idea as one way of improving the city's deteriorating finances.
"If you think about it from an investment perspective, if we can create jobs then we generate more (government) revenue," said Mike Kazmierski, chief of the Greater Colorado Springs Economic Development Corp. Kazmierski isn't a member of the city committee, and it's uncertain whether his organization would benefit if voters approve the committee's plan. He noted economic development is the only one of five major city government goals that doesn't have a devoted supply of tax dollars.
"I cannot think of a more important place to invest in right now than in job creation," Kazmierski said.
Critics aren't so sure. The Sustainable Funding Committee's vote to send the recommendation to the council was 13-5. One of the dissenting votes, Joseph Woodford, said he doubts the money would do any good.
"I don't think this stuff works," he told the committee. "The idea of government creating jobs strikes me as very doubtful. ... We're trying to make water go uphill."
The property tax began in 1989 to pay off $27.5 million in debt the city took on to extend Powers Boulevard and build the Police Operations Center at 705 S. Nevada Ave. The debt is expected to be paid off this year, and then the tax would go away. The cost is $10.59 per year on a house worth $200,000.
Sean Paige, chief of the advocacy group Local Liberty Action, said voters might consider putting that money toward a tangible project such as road improvements, but he views the committee's plan as an "invitation to mischief." Paige is former editorial page editor of The Gazette.
"It places the city on the slippery slope of corporate welfare, where we don't want to be," Paige said.
The council will discuss the plan along with other ballot measures at a 1 p.m. meeting Monday. Some council members were friendly to the idea during a preliminary discussion last week, although they suggested changes might be in order before the measure makes it to the ballot. Councilman Jerry Heimlicher said he wants more emphasis on preventing companies from leaving town or closing.
"In the environment we're in right now, our biggest challenge is to keep the jobs we already have," he said.