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State Sen. Jeff Golden is on a mission — a crusade, if you will — to ensure that Oregon will be better armed to fight the financial battles associated with the the now chronic wildfires that stretch our resources to the limit on a yearly basis.

However, the Ashland Democrat’s proposal, despite its merits, continues to run smack into obstacles that thus far have stalled his efforts and perhaps well might do so again.

Golden, in a letter last week to Gov. Tina Kotek and state political leaders of both major parties, has proposed establishing a $1.7 billion trust fund that — through interest and dividends — would go to wildfire-related programs.

Where would the money come from? Well, that’s the kicker.

Actually, it is the kicker.

And that’s where Golden’s quest — which would create its nest egg by setting aside 30% of the 2021-23 record-setting $5.61 billion taxpayer rebate — could be tilting at one windmill too far.

“We have a life and death threat in Southern Oregon and increasingly across the state of Oregon in wildfire,” Golden said last week in an interview with Jefferson Public Radio.

The state approved $220 million for wildfire preparedness in 2021, but Golden told JPR that figure will decrease to less than $100 million in the 2023-25 budget.

“And,” he said, “no one else is suggesting a source of funding that can protect our communities going forward.”

Golden said that a similar proposal he made during the most recent session of the Oregon Legislature never advanced past the Senate’s Revenue Committee.

It’s not difficult to figure out why — again, it’s the kicker.

Regardless of how many revenue streams ultimately funding government services are the result of taxpayer dollars, the kicker has been elevated to a unique status.

It’s seen as the government saying that it has taken too much of your money, and will give the excess back — albeit in the of refundable credits on our tax returns.

That’s a powerful, if intangible, message for taxpayers — and, more to the point, voters to hear.

Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp seized upon that message when issuing a statement that JPR quoted about the wildfire proposal.

“Senator Golden is yet again using wildfire to attempt to take the kicker,” the Bend Republican said. “The people of Oregon voted to protect their kicker tax refund from politicians, and this is another clear example why.”

No matter how urgent the issue, or how valuable the service provided would be, “We’re taking back some of the money you’re owed, without asking you” is a difficult proposition for many to favor.

But, frankly, it goes beyond that to something Knopp touched upon in his rejection of the notion.

Everyone, even those who would reject the kicker idea, knows the cost — financial and otherwise — of the wildfires which have plagued the state in recent years, particularly the fires here in Golden’s district.

But, once that door is opened, once $1.7 billion is taken this time, what’s to stop other political leaders for making future claims on those taxpayer dollars to fund investments they see as equally important?

Once opened, how — and why — could the door be closed?

“I’ve been told ’no’ more than once on this,” Golden posted on social media after the JPR story appeared. “But until we solve the puzzle of how to pay the big bill of wildfire protection going forward, we shouldn’t take ’no’ for an answer.”

Golden’s intentions, and his heart, are in the right place on this critical matter. But in politics, sometimes those alone aren’t enough.