September 9, 2008
Circling the Bowl
It may be that my estimate of the midyear budget review yielding a $150 million deficit was too optimistic. We're apparently starting with a baseline gap that's already one-fifth of that:
The state ended its last budget year awash in red ink, according to a newly-released Aug. 29 report by state Controller Marc A. Leonetti.Made public after The Journal made inquiries today, the report pegs the end-of-year deficit at $33.6 million. Of that amount, $8.2 million is attributed to lower-than-anticipated revenues. Most of the rest is attributed to over-budget spending.
Governor Carcieri's office overspent its own budget by $184,152; the Department of Human Services overspent its budget by a total of $46.2 million in state and federal funds. Of that, the state portion is $18.6 million.
If the governor's explanation of unachieved furlough days and a legislative decreases in its contingency fund hold water, I'd say it's time to stop playing footsie with legislators and unions alike. Sink or swim, he's going to end up taking the blame for the state's collapse; that's partly why the other side is so unyielding.
The executive must take whatever steps are necessary, and if the opposition squeals that they are too harsh, then the governor should point to the poor condition of the tools that he's been given.
It's worse than that.
Start with the $30M. Add another 30 in personell savings which have proved illusory. Add another 80 for the "global waiver" which has proven a complete hoax. Now throw in the deteriorating tax and gambling receipts from a state whose most productive citizens continue to slowly slip out of the state.
That gives you about a $200 million supplemental deficit for 09 and somewhere north of that for 10.
As has been said ad nuseum here, as long as the union/welfare/crony kleptocracy keeps ruling things are going to keep getting "worser and worser".
i keep asking what will it take for the tailspin to stop
Posted by: johnpaycheck at September 9, 2008 8:23 PMSadly, many of us are not holding out much hope for Don to make a difference.
His heart is in the right place, but it seems he just can't help but step on his weener at every turn.
He appropriately wants employees to start paying their fair share for their healthcare, yet he foolishly takes the $2,000 buy-back (showing the Entitlement permeates all of gov't).
He wants Pension reform, but he exempts the Judiciary.
He appropriately demands fiscal discipline, but foolishly overspends his own budget creating a distraction and giving the "other side" ammunition.
He promises to get tough, but wastes his time in courts presided over by people with the same Entitlement-minded interests as the people he is opposing.
He needs to stop screwing around and start laying people off enmasse.
And he needs to go on tour explaining that the "middle class" in RI is more than the 1 in 6 workers that are dependent on the rest of us in terms of making a living.
He needs to clearly explain that the real middle class is being pushed to extinction due to the utter contemp that the Entitlement-minded Public employees have for the Taxpayers.
It is time to stop f'ing around in court and get on with the beheadings. If he doesn't go on offense soon and start filling the baskets with heads, he will be tarred with the train wreck that is coming.
The only silver lining is that someone like Charlie Tuna will waltz in and be saddled with the massive Tax increases that will be required to sustain the insanity that the GA has created.
And perhaps then, people will get off their asses and elect new people to the GA.
Posted by: George Elbow at September 9, 2008 10:30 PMThe only silver lining is that someone like Charlie Tuna will waltz in and be saddled with the massive Tax increases that will be required to sustain the insanity that the GA has created.
And perhaps then, people will get off their asses and elect new people to the GA.
Posted by George Elbow at September 9, 2008 10:30 PM
That's right. For all we talk about the Governor's race the better strategy is to not even run a candidate for governor but concentrate on the GA. Once we have 1/3 of the GA then we unseat the "progressive" governor, who by then will have raised the sales tax to 11%. Whoever controls the governership plus 1/3 of the GA "wins" under RI's constitutional scheme.
Posted by: Mike at September 10, 2008 8:28 AM