VITAL SIGNSrnPOLITICSrnJudicial TaxationrnWithoutrnRepresentationrnby Congressman Don ManzuUornThere is an unattributed quotationrnthat says, “The average taxpayer isrnthe first of America’s natural resources tornbe exhausted.” The American peoplernhave turned away from a big, activist federalrngovernment because they feel theyrnhave been forgotten; in fact, taxpayer resourcesrnhave long been exhausted.rnToday, average Americans, forgottenrnby the bloated bureaucratic culture ofrnWashington, get up in the morning, getrntheir kids ready for school, pack theirrnlunches, go off to work, come home, fixrndinner, make sure their kids do theirrnhomework, do some housework, and gornto bed only to start the routine all overrnagain the next morning, hi the process,rnaverage Americans are working harderrntoday than ever before, but taking homernless and less money. Why? Because theyrnare paying more in taxes today than everrnbefore. In 1950, the average Americanrnpaid one dollar out of every 50 dollarsrnearned in federal taxes. Today, the averagernAmerican pays one dollar out ofrnevery four.rnIn two-income families, the secondrnwage earner is working just to pay state,rnlocal, and federal taxes—a nearly 40 percentrntax burden on total family income.rnThere is a chapter that normally appearsrnin the federal budget called “GenerationalrnForecasts,” which states that if werndon’t change the way government on allrnlevels spends our money, by the timernchildren born after the year 1992 enterrnthe workforce, they will be paying a combinedrnstate, local, and federal tax rate betweenrn80 and 90 percent! Think of it.rnOur children, the future average Americanrnworkers, will be going through thernsame daily routine as we are today, butrnonly being able to keep 10 to 20 percentrnof what they earn to pay for housing,rntransportation, food, and clothing. Thisrnis hardly the legacy that we want to leavernour children. The scary thing is, we arernalready halfway there.rnThe American worker, the Americanrnfamily, and America’s children need notrnonly tax relief hui tax reform. Whatrnneeds immediate attention is judicialrntaxation. Case after case has been documentedrnin which unelected, activist federalrnjudges have directly or indirectlyrncaused state or local taxes to be increasedrnas part of a remedy. These cases rangernfrom public works cases to school segregationrncases.rnI cite, for example, the current dilemmarnfacing the people of the Rockford,rnIllinois, Public School District 205. In anrneffort to save protracted legal fees, thernRockford School District plead guilty torna racial discrimination lawsuit. The evidencernwas overwhelming, and FederalrnJudge Stanley Roszkowski (MagistraternMichael Mahoney now presiding) wouldrnhave found them guilty anyway. Thisrnleft the school district looking the peoplernof Rockford square in the eye, saying:rn”We have perpetrated an injustice, wernmust now right that wrong.”rnLittle did anyone know what faternawaited the families, children, and taxpayers,rnall wanting to provide an equal,rnquality education to all of their children.rnSchool District 205 in Rockford, Illinois,rnencompasses several surrounding communities.rnThis is a metropolitan arearnof 250,000 people. Instead of finding arncommunity-based solution that we canrnall get behind, an activist judge has takenrnit upon himself to play school board, superintendent,rnprincipal, and teacher.rnAnd, of course, he tells the familiesrnwhich non-neighborhood school theirrnchildren will attend. The price tag hasrnalready reached $80 million with anotherrn$25 million already committed to bernspent. On November 12, 1996, the federalrnjudge ordered yet another $50 millionrntax increase. The people of thernRockford school district cannot continuernto take on this huge cost, and at the samerntime pay other state and federal taxes.rnThis is cleady taxation without representation,rnand is serving to divide our communityrnfurther.rnAs a result of these forced tax increases,rnfamilies are moving out of Rockford,rnsenior citizens either are or are on thernverge of losing their homes—homes thatrnthey have paid for—because they can’trnafford these tax increases. Further, theserntax increases are dividing the community,rnnot bringing it together; in fact, therernare many members of Rockford’s blackrncommunity who fear that these judicialrntax increases are hurting and strainingrnrace relations in our city. The worst resultrnof this tax-and-spend judicial activismrnis that the children are not gettingrnthe education they need.rnTo remedy this situation, I introducedrnlegislation during the 104th Congressrnthat I believe is long overdue. The JudicialrnMandate and Remedy ClarificationrnAct of 1996 seeks to limit the authorityrnof federal courts to fashion remedies thatrnrequire state and local jurisdictions to assess,rnlevy, or collect taxes in any way,rnshape, or form. The legislation has nothingrnto do with race, how much moneyrnpeople make, or where they live. It hasrneverything to do with keeping unelectedrnactivist federal judges from destroyingrnour communities. Keep in mind that judicialrntaxation is not limited to schoolrndistricts. Federal judges have ordered taxrnincreases to build public housing and tornexpand jails. Any state or local governmentrnis subject to such rulings from thernfederal courts. My legislation is aboutrntaxpayers paying for federal court remediesrninvolving the raising of taxes withoutrnthe permission of the taxpayers. Arncourt-ordered remedy should be temperedrnby the community’s ability to payrnfor it, without raising taxes.rnThe legislation which I authored inrnthe House, H.R. 3100, the counterpartrnto S. 1817—introduced by ChairmanrnGrassley and Chairman Hatch—doesrnnot ban judicial taxation. I understandrnthe position of those who loathe judicialrntaxation and want it outlawed outright.rnBut my research has led me to believernthat an outright ban on judicial taxationrnwould not work. Let me explain why.rnMunicipalities and states enter into legalrncontracts and bond issues. Businesses,rnand individuals who enter into suchrncontracts or purchase municipal bonds,rn36/CHRONICLESrnrnrn