By Marshall Griffin, KWMU
Jefferson City, MO – The Missouri House has passed a proposed constitutional amendment that would bar judges from imposing tax increases.
The controversial resolution passed by a slim margin, 82 to 68, with the vote split almost totally along party lines. It was sponsored by State Representative Jane Cunningham (R, Chesterfield).
"If you want to help ratify the call of the American Revolution that said, 'No taxation without representation,' you vote 'yes' on this...but if you want to make the courts the King of England, you vote 'no!'" Cunningham said.
Opponents say, though, that citizens' rights could be jeopardized if judges are limited in the decisions they're allowed to make.
State Representative and Attorney General Candidate Margaret Donnelly (D, St. Louis) calls the resolution radical and outrageous.
"It's been working for 200 years in the United States Constitution that we have a balance of power, and it has been working in the State of Missouri since the adoption of our constitution...we haven't seen any need to change it," Donnelly said.
Donnelly also noted that there has not been any instance of a Missouri judge ordering a tax increase on anyone.
The resolution now goes to the Missouri Senate. If approved by both chambers and signed by the governor, it would then go before voters in November.