Thursday, November 7, 1985
Page 4
Daily Nebraskan
Income tax
I Mm P Flwiir THE SECURITY ANlT
e
increase mosic
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asiUDJie answer
ov. Bob Kerrey's decision to allow the Legislature to
increase state income taxes during its special ses
sion should lift the morale of NU students and
faculty.
An income tax increase is the most fair and
feasible way to overcome the state's budget shortfall. Nebras
kans who make no income would not have to pay the added tax,
and those who are better off could afford the increase.
In reality, a tax increase would not ask more of Nebraskans.
The state tax system is based on the federal income tax
system, and state revenues have dropped during the last three
years because President Ronald Reagan reduced federal
income taxes.
Nebraskans actually are paying a smaller percentage of
their income to state taxes than in previous years. According to
the 1984 Economic Report, federal income tax has been
reduced 23 percent during the last three years.
Thus, according to figures gathered by Gary Schwendiman,
UNL dean of the College of Business Administration, Nebras
kans should be paying 24 percent in federal tax bills to the
state in order to maintain the same real tax of 1981. Nebras
kans currently pay 19 percent of their federal income tax to the
state.
Despite the agriculture crisis, Nebraska is not a poor state.
Only 7 percent of the state's income tax revenue comes from
farmers and ranchers.
Personal income in Nebraska increased 10 percent from
1983 to 1984. Nebraska also led the nation in personal income
growth from June 1984 to June 1985.
In 1984, Nebraska was 23rd among the states in per capita
personal income. Yet in per capita state taxes, Nebraska
ranked 37th.
To avoid future budget shortfalls because of federal income
tax changes, state legislators should divorce state tax rates
from the federal tax system.
When the income tax revenues fluctuate and are unreliable,
the entire state suffers. Money, time and resources are wasted
because legislators must hold special sessions to haggle over
the budget shortfalls.
An independent income tax system could provide more
stability for the state and give universities, colleges and state
services the support they deserve.
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QMaffit witkomt raming
It's possible through faculty, student cooperation
I have never been fond of measuring
units. You know, the kind that
confused us all through physics and
chemistry, those wonderful formulary
courses. Just when I thought I had a
grasp on the foot-pound per second,
someone would sadistically ask for the
metric equivalent.
My main problem with these unit
labels, however, is that they are pre
sented as being set-in stone, so ob
jective and exact that one should not
question them. There is one currently
flying at me from all directions to
which I object: I am fed up with being
told that the standard unit of measure
ment for educational excellence are
dollars and cents.
Joe
Schuele
1 may be naively idealistic, or per
haps just blinded by a hatred for tax
increases, but I don't swallow the
notion that educational quality auto
matically suffers (or improves) accord
ing to its budget allocation.
Why label an instructor "mediocre"
on the basis of salary, or declare that a
program pales in comparison with that
of other institution simply because it
operates on a tighter budget?
Now that student interest has been
aroused, we should look at ways of
maintaining our university other than
further burdening the Nebraska tax
payer, who, in case you hadn't noticed,
is not enjoying the best of times.
Why is it so unthinkable that, with
proper effort, we could keep a quality
faculty in spite of a conservative salary
and benefit scale? If instructors show
up every morning in order to reap big
dollars, I must say that they made a
poor career choice. Is it impossible
that faculty moving on to greener
pastures can be adequately replaced?
We should be selective in using the
label of indispensability in education
or any aspect of society, for those that
warrant it are few and far between.
A number game does not represent
the total question here. A great portion
of the "excellence" we are striving for
could be measured by our efforts to
overcome financial adversity. Maybe it
is time we stopped our full-lipped pout
and took constructive measures toward
preserving the quality of our university.
After all, we need not equate "I support
NU" with "Let's bleed the taxpayers
dry."
Surely there are departments that
could use voluntary assistance. That
strikes me as a more productive use of
one's energy than organizing a "wear
blue" campaign. Perhaps faculty and
students could put their heads togther
to find ways to operate programs more
efficiently, rather than rely on the
generic, end-of-semester evaluation
sheets.
A more familiar answer may be that
students will need to take on extra
working hours to face another tuition
increase. I realize many students al
ready perform a remarkable balancing
act between work, school, and, in many
cases, family care. But we should not
think that this type of struggle is
restricted to students. It extends to
many others in our state as well.
Nor should we take the attitude that
such an extra effort is indicative of a
flaw in our system. It represents a mark
of excellence in its own right, and
seldom goes unrewarded.
All of this is not to say that the
difficulties of our state and our educa
tional system can be taken lightly, for
they demand the attention and input of
a great many people. But when we look
for ways to channel that input, we
should keep in mind that this situation
calls for a shoulder to the wheel, not
just an outstretched palm.
Schuele is a UNL senior advertising
major.
deal with an unwanted pregnancy js to
prevent it.
Pro-life attack of Title X program
hinders right to family planning
If you made a mistake and studied tions. But that isn't enough for the pro- pregnancy, she has the equal right to
logic as a child instead of politics, life crowd. They insist that' the money information about treatment. She must
you probably assume that a foe of is nevertheless "tainted." What they give informed consent. Any clinic that
abortion is a fan of family planning, call for is a "wall of separation" between took federal money promising that its
Aftpr all vaii roacnn iha knot . ... j . . j
. . . J w.c ucoi naj iu uirui control ana arjortion. doctors would never utter tne woru
In blissful harmony, Sen. Orrin Hatch "abortion" could lose that money in a
and Rep. Jack Kemp have offered iden- malpractice suit. Such a "gag" rule is
tical amendments to Title X, and the also unconstitutional.
White House has chimed in with its What of the amendment to deny
approval. They propose that if Title X is birth-control money to groups who offer
continued beyond the Nov. 1 4 deadline, abortions under the same roof or mast
no federal funding could be used for head? Most abortions are performed in
abortion counseling or referrals. Nor hospitals. Faced with a choice, most
could federal money go to a group, hospitals could not stop performing a
clinic or hospital that performed abor- legal, medical procedure. They would
tions with its own funds. stop doing family planning.
This is the first time that Kemp has A prime target of Title X shooting
taken such a lead role on a conserva- match is Planned Parenthood. The
tive "social issue." He appears to be group gets $30 million of the $142 mil
primping his right wing for the flight of lion in Title X money and is a vocal
1988. The pressure, however, comes enough pro-choice group to raise the
from restless pro-lifers who have gotten hackles of Hatch-Kemp folk. But Planned
very little from the Reagan administra- Parenthood, a well-funded private
tion. Their stategy has changed from organization, would be hurt less by the
trying to make abortion illegal to trying demise of Title X than the small health
to make it impossible. This is their departments and neighborhood clinics
most direct attack yet on birth control, that service t he poor.
In real life, as opposed to politics, no "It's pure insanity;" saysFaye Wat
medically ethical doctor or clinic can tleton, president of Planned Parent
refuse to tell a patient the full range of hood. "Half of the six million pregnan
meoical options. Whether a woman has cies in this country are unintentional;
a ruptured appendix or an unwanted Please see GOODMAN on 5
l9i
Ellen
Goodman
Under this cloud of logic, you proba
bly even assume universal support for
Title X. That federal program funds
family planning, serves some five mil
lion women a year, prevents some
800,000 unwanted pregnancies and some
400,000 abortions every year.
The reality, however the political
reality is that Title X is under stren
uous attack by those who insist that a
vote for the family-planning program is
a vote for abortion. Remember Voodoo
Economics? What we have here is Voo
doo Biology.
The way the law currently is written,
no Title X money can be used for abor-
