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Amidst the current economic downturn, strategies abound to control government funding and spending capacities to satisfy financially-stressed voters of all political persuasions. Initiative 1033 (I-1033), a preeminent measure on the Washington State November ballot this fall, proposes draconian limits on state, county, and municipal government financing. If passed, I-1033 will restrain revenue growth (and, thereby, expenditures) to a point where, increasingly, governments cannot fund basic services such as education, public health, and law enforcement. The following examines I-1033’s intent, and uses positive and normative economic perspectives to evaluate its merit.