If you read between the lines, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey announced she will serve her next four years as governor and retire into the sunset.
In my book, she will go down as either a great politician or a great leader who surrounded herself with great people as she marched to the governor's mansion. Ivey mounted a gubernatorial campaign several years ago only to abandon that campaign when polling numbers showed she couldn't win. She didn't totally jump ship, she just shifted directions. She decided to change her course and run for lieutenant governor instead and was elected. Somebody made the right call on that one and you have to give Ivey credit for either making that decision or listening to others who told her what to do.
She was in the right place and the right time when Gov. Robert Bentley began playing hanky panky with Rebecca Mason and wam boom, Ivey was sitting the governor's chair.
She ran a brilliant primary campaign by refusing to debate any of her challengers. She rarely did impromptu interviews with the press who were asking her specific questions on her positions. She simply said she didn't have time for debates, she was working too hard to bring new jobs to Alabama and she was there to clean up the dirty politics that had engulfed the Legislature and the governor's office.
Democrat Walt Maddox did everything in his power to get Ivey on the debate stage. She refused. On more than one occasion she said the only people who wanted her to debate Maddox were Maddox and the press. Maddox didn't stand a chance with a closed-mouth Ivey.
Ivey revealed her goals for not only the next legislative session but for he next four years and beyond talking about tax increases. She was delivering that message to a House and Senate full of Republicans when most all of them have either signed or pledged a 'no new taxes' pledge.
So this ambitious goal to raise gasoline and diesel taxes and address the state's crumbling prison system problem may make some of her Republican supporters in the Legislature take a deep breath. Those are the people who campaigned back in their respective districts promising not to raise taxes. If they go along with Ivey, they'll have to face those same voters when they come home.
The first President Bush got his tail in a crack and got defeated in part to his now infamous statement “Ready my lips, no new taxes”.
Nobody likes new taxes any more than they like old taxes, but taxes are necessary to fund governmental operations. My bet is if you poll most people in the state or nation, they'd tell you the government needs to make cuts and live within its current means.
They say that until those cuts hit close to home.
I support Ivey's plan to raise gasoline taxes to help rebuild and improve Alabama's road system, but I support it with a grain of salt. I also know if we don't do something about the prison system the federal government will come in a force us to do something that will likely cost more money than Ivey will ask for.
I didn't read a figure Ivey was talking about on fuel taxes, but in the past I've seen figures that range from about 10 cents per gallon up to about 18 cents per gallon. The Legislature will set the amount.
But before I jump on board and support a fuel tax and support members of my legislative delegation on their votes, I want to know how the money will be distributed.
Will counties and municipalities get a fair share of the money? My bet is most of the fuel stations in this state are located within an incorporated municipality. Will Flomaton, Brewton, Atmore and East Brewton get some money to fix their crumbling road systems? Will Escambia County get enough money to address some secondary roads that are used daily but don't ever seem to qualify for federal and state grant funds?
I'm all for improving the state's road system. That's where the rubber really meets the road in terms of economic development and quality of life. The goods and services we take for granted that will be in the grocery store travel on roads; the logs that fuel Georgia Pacific in Brewton travel by roads; the gasoline that we will likely pay more for gets to the service station by roads.
I support the concept Ivey laid out in her inaugural address, but like her campaigns she was short on details. Until those details are released, by either her or the Legislature, I'll withhold judgement.
