Published in the Asbury Park Press on June 1, 2008
Gov. Corzine is fond of telling critics of his proposed budget cuts to come up with something better. Republican lawmakers have done just that. They proposed $1.3 billion in alternative cuts Thursday that would allow for full funding of property tax rebates, restore municipal aid, make modest reductions in public employee benefits and fund transportation projects without having to resort to toll or gas tax hikes.
The plan is responsible, well-reasoned and in tune with what taxpayers in the state have been clamoring for. That didn’t keep Corzine from immediately criticizing it. “This is all make-believe math,” he said hours after the plan was released. “This is the same sort of gimmickry and trickery that has put the state in the fiscal mess we now find ourselves trying to deal with.”
The proposal is nothing of the kind. It is specific, achievable and grounded in common sense — something sorely missing from Corzine’s $32.9 billion spending plan.
The Republicans’ budget alternative would restore rebates Corzine proposed eliminating for households earning more than $150,000 and restore Corzine’s proposed 10 percent cut in municipal aid. It also would constitutionally dedicate $500 million annually to replenish transportation funding, increase the state surplus and eliminate charging rural municipalities for state police coverage. The plan also could restore some funding for charity care, nursing homes and colleges, and eliminate proposed Medicaid co-payments and an income limit for college scholarships.
About half of the proposed cuts would come from just seven of the plan’s 67 recommendations: $107 million in reduced “distressed cities” aid, $105 million in smaller funding increases for Abbott districts, $90 million from improved state purchasing procedures, $85 million in pension and health benefit reforms, $69 million in reduced urban enterprise zone tax breaks, $68 million by eliminating dozens of political appointees and $43 million by converting property tax rebates to tax credits.
“Our primary concern in crafting a state budget should not be the priorities of Trenton politicians, but those of the taxpayers who are demanding a more affordable New Jersey and a government that is more accountable,” said Assembly Minority Leader Alex DeCroce, R-Morris. Hear, hear.
The proposed cuts are neither radical nor unrealistic. They are eminently doable. Whether Corzine has the fortitude to make them is another matter. One thing is clear: Republicans have developed a plan that conforms with what most New Jersey taxpayers want. All taxpayers deserve more from Corzine than a blanket dismissal of the GOP alternative. They should insist he and the Democratic leadership in the Legislature weigh the plan carefully and provide a point-by-point response to each of the suggested cuts.
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June 12, 2008
