The principle of open public debate grounds our country’s freedom and it needs expression around all of those issues, like this one, that require large public expenditures and a major shift in public policy.
Another debate sharing this principle, perhaps even at a greater level of importance, is the one around flood protection and central to that discussion is the question of the Auburn Dam, the only proposal yet presented that provides 500 year flood protection to Sacramento.
An excerpt.
Editorial: An arena proposal opens the way for a debate
Put it on the ballot, questions and all, then get all details to voters ASAP
Published 12:01 am PDT Sunday, July 23, 2006
After years of falling short, local political leaders and the Sacramento Kings finally have come up with a proposal to pay for a new arena. In the coming weeks, county supervisors should vote to put it on the November ballot. Then it will be time for the heavy lifting: explaining and selling this deal to a wary public.
The proposal calls for presenting voters with two ballot measures. One would increase the county's sales tax by a quarter-cent for the next 15 years. The second would suggest -- but not require -- spending about half this money (more if there are cost overruns) on a downtown arena. The rest would be distributed for community projects throughout the county.
The deal is structured loosely because an unrestricted increase in the sales tax requires only majority support of the voters. A sales tax increase specifically dedicated to an arena would require two-thirds support to pass.
The Kings and the county did not write the rules of this election game. Thanks to voter-approved initiatives and court decisions, it is easier for voters to cut blank checks to governments than make them obey a spending plan. A local taxpayer group is already howling about this proposal because of its blank-check nature. Too bad such groups also have opposed tax reforms to make the system more sensible.
For now, political backers of this deal, such as county Supervisor Roger Dickinson and Sacramento Vice Mayor Rob Fong, are the lone masters of the complicated details. But the deal ultimately must speak for itself. The public will want to understand how much of the tab it and the Maloofs respectively will pay, and if the deal is fair. So far, that's unclear.
