News from Georgia 2006 KIDS COUNT

How Are the Children?
GBPI Shows How State Revenue Policies Affect the Health of Georgia's Young People

by Peter Armstrong

A KIDS COUNT Tour participant examines the well-being of children in Georgia.

Children are our future. This statement underscores not only a simple, universal truth, but also an important call to action. In Georgia, the difference between a bright or bleak future may well be determined by how adequately and effectively the state commits resources toward addressing a broad range of issues that consistently place it in low rankings for the quality of life of our children. This is the message Alan Essig, executive director of the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute (GBPI), presented as one of the featured speakers during the 2006 Georgia KIDS COUNT Tour this fall.

The theme of Essig's presentation during the KIDS COUNT Tour, which stopped at eight locations across the state from Dalton to Waycross, is an important fact any advocate for Georgians should keep in mind: all public policy in Georgia is driven by the state budget and the budget is driven by the tax system.

"The amount of funds available to support programs for children, as well as to address other public needs in Georgia, is directly relevant to the amount of revenues the state generates each year," Essig said. "The stark irony of this relationship is that the budget process is based heavily on a tax system established nearly 70 years ago. The tax system has received only minimal updates over most of its existence, and as a result the state loses millions of dollars each year in monies that could be directed toward the critical needs of Georgia's children."

“Tax modernization can create significant opportunities to generate more state revenues without increasing the tax obligations of most Georgians.” -Alan Essig

Critical indeed. According to the 2006 KIDS COUNT Data Book, a report published and funded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Georgia's best ranking among U.S. states in any of the 10 indicators of well-being for children is in the death rate of children ages 1-14, at only 29th. These indicators include rates of infant deaths, low birth weights, children living in poverty, children living in one-parent homes, and high school dropouts. Georgia's overall national ranking is 44.

Trends indicate that the news will only get worse; the costs of providing programs such as PeachCare, Georgia's health program for children in low-income families, as well as for the children in the state who have no health insurance, continue to increase dramatically.

In his presentation, Essig noted that the capacity of the nation's fifth fastest growing state to address its mounting list of challenges will continue to diminish due to the popularity of tax and spending cuts in the state budget. But he also illustrated how modernizing the tax system and structuring it more fairly can help.

"Modernizing Georgia's tax system can have several beneficial effects," said Essig. "It can close the loopholes that benefit only a few entities but pass the tax burden on to the majority of Georgians. It can compel state officials to conduct the kinds of tax expenditure analysis that ensures they practice fairness and transparency in determining who gets tax breaks and who doesn't. And it can infuse a more progressive approach into revenue generation that reduces the tax burden on Georgia's citizens who can least afford to pay.

A member of the community takes notes during the budget presentation.

"These are only a few of the long-term benefits of tax modernization," he explained. "And one of the most important is that state programs, including those for children, can avoid funding cuts that ultimately hurt our children. Tax modernization can create significant opportunities to generate more state revenues without increasing the tax obligations of most Georgians."

In countries and cultures around the world, people greet each other by asking, "How are the children?" The greetings reflect a common recognition that the strength of families and communities is directly related to the health and well-being of their children. The KIDS COUNT Tour was designed to draw public attention to the quality of life indicators that impact Georgia's children and therefore, Georgia's future.

GBPI is an independent, nonprofit, non-partisan organization engaged in research and education on the fiscal and economic health of the state of Georgia. Alan Essig and the GBPI staff participate in professional conferences, public forums, and other speaking opportunities throughout the state. The mission of GBPI is to provide reliable, accessible, and timely analyses to promote greater state government fiscal accountability as a way to improve services to Georgians in need and to promote quality of life for all Georgians. For more information, visit the GBPI Web site.

Peter Armstrong is the Community Outreach and Education coordinator at GBPI.

Watch Alan Essig's entire 2006 KIDS COUNT Tour presentation in QuickTime

Download the PowerPoint Presentation

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Links to Georgia 2006 KIDS COUNT