MISSOURI BOND ISSUE: THE CREDIT CARD BLUES

Fourteen years ago Missourians approved a highly touted $60O million bond issue that proponents claimed would end the state's long-standing capital oversight of colleges and universities, mental hospitals and other public buildings. Proposed by then Governor Kit Bond, and approved by a Democratically controlled General Assembly, the bond issue was touted by both the governor and legislators as a way to get Missouri moving during a recession characterized by high unemployment, sluggish retail sales and lower tax revenues.

The reasons given the public for the bond issue and the motivations in proposing the bond issue were somewhat different, however, which serves to strengthen the contention that too much public policy is merely illusion and public relations. Such was certainly true in the case of the 1982 bond issue. One of its hidden motivations was the political resurrection of Kit Bond, who found himself in a second term as governor burdened with the image of a do-nothing chief executive.

Rather than simply point out that in times of declining state revenue, when recession dollars were drying up, Bond and his advisers decided to enhance his image and promote a major building program that would be funded on the backs of future taxpayers. The age-old concept of buy now and pay later was not invented in corporate board rooms but in political caucus rooms. The Democrats joined with the Republican governor because they, too, were feeling heat from constituents over the absence of real progress in state programs, and because they savored the opportunity to dispense millions of dollars in capital improvements within their own districts. Some legislators even fantasized about new buildings being named in their honor.

There were few who raised a voice of opposition. I remember being denounced numerous times by state officials who were nervously promoting this guilt-free bonanza, and the only solace I had was from a handful of lawmakers, including state Sen. Emory Melton of Cassville, one of Missouri's few living treasures who still fights to maintain a degree of sanity in Jefferson City. There were a few other fiscal conservatives in our small band, but it was not a winning team. We lost to the expediency of easy money, and the only comfort was in knowing that someday we would be proved right.

That proof came earlier than we expected, since after the passage of the bond issue, the General Assembly, in concert with the governor's office, began divvying up the spoils, and what a fight that was. The most powerful took huge chunks of the money for their districts, plundering the available funds as they doled out building after building to favored state agencies, sometimes without regard to actual need. This vast division of public money took a considerable amount of time and attention in the General Assembly as members fought over the bond issue capital like a beggar grabs for a crumb of bread. It was not a pleasant sight.

One of the more discouraging aspects of that bond issue is that at least some of the amount was used to construct and repair state buildings that are no longer in use. Several buildings of the Department of Mental Health that were targeted for bond issue funds have either been shuttered and abandoned or turned over to regional governments. Even though a large state office building was built with bond money, the state has leased many more offices in Jefferson City for state agency use. Despite the $1 billion-plus expenditure, it turns out Missouri didn't come close to meeting its building needs, particularly at state colleges and universities where political muscle was weak or non-existent.

While the face value of the bond issue was $600 million, the actual cost to future taxpayers was, including interest, over $1 billion, and since interest payments receive precedence over all else, it will surprise many to know that Missourians still owe, after 14 years, $559 million of the original $600 million. After paying their sales, use and income taxes for nearly a decade and a half, Missourians have paid only $41 million on a $600 million debt, which according to my calculation is only 7 percent of the amount owed by every man, woman and child in the state. What a deal!

Bond issues are popular with voters since they are not required to pick up their tab at the immediate moment, delaying payment just like the credit card publicity promises. Unfortunately Missourians have a standing balance of $559 million on previous purchases, and despite the fact we didn't get our money's worth, no one is making credits on that debt except the taxpayers of Missouri. That isn't such a deal!

Now Missourians are being asked to approve still another bond issue, this one in the amount of $250 million, although its cost will be twice that with interest payments. Projects proposed from this revenue will provide badly needed capital structures and improvements on the state's college campuses, work which has been delayed for years, and new prisons which the public has demanded to house an increasing number of criminals as a result of tough-on-crime laws. For those who give no thought to tomorrow, it's an easy call. For those who believe there are other, better ways to finance capital structures, opposition wins only disapproval.

Had our elected officials displayed better judgment when it came time to finance less-essential projects, funds would be available without a due bill on future taxpayer earnings. Money that has been spent to build domed stadiums, convention hotels, pay symphony deficits, refurbish and constantly remodel legislative and other state offices, purchase thousands of computers which soon become obsolete and operate local transit systems that do not pay their way would be available to finance capital projects that have merit and are needed. Missouri does not have a good track record when it comes to adequate planning for future needs, and this can be traced back to the political agenda of countless elected officials over a countless number of years.

We need to improve our colleges and universities and we need more prison cells. We also need state officials who are intelligent enough to plan to meet these requirements in a sensible, orderly and economically prudent manner.

Jack Stapleton teaches a political science course at Southeast Missouri State University. A former editor of the (Kennett) Daily Dunklin Democrat, his column is distributed by the Missouri News and Editorial Service, Inc.