forgotston.com

According to a story in Sunday’s Baton Rouge paper ( see it here) our state’s “Roads Scholar” plans to balance his proposed Operating Budget for the fiscal year that begins on July 1, 2010, with one-time revenues.

As reported, “The Scholar” will use surplus funds from 2008-09 and about half of the revenues (The rest goes to replenish the “Rainy Day Fund” and to pay the folks from CA who managed the program for the state.) from the most recent tax amnesty program.

Both of those sources are considered “non-recurring” and thus cannot be used in the State Operating Budget.

”The Scholar’s” plan is to circumvent the intent of the state constitution by substituting the non-recurring funds for recurring state funds used to pay the debt service (mostly interest) on the state’s massive debt. That will free up at least $300 Million in recurring state funds to balance the proposed Operating Budget.

The net effect of this end-run on the state constitution will be to exacerbate the state’s fiscal woes by an additional $300 Million in the next fiscal year. In other words, put off until tomorrow what should be done today.

Also, next year the leges can raise taxes during the Regular Session at the same time they consider the state budget for 2011-12. “The Scholar” has not yet opined on taxes at that time.

Law of holes

First law of holes - when you’re in one, stop digging!

Despite allegedly having a high I.Q. “The Scholar” is either a slow learner or hasn’t mastered the first law on holes.

Perhaps it is because he is not familiar with manual labor.

In any case, because his lack of fiscal sense or even common sense, “The Scholar” is making a bad situation worse.

The leges could stop the digging, but that would take leadership and a willingness to stand up to this Administration not previously seen.

Solutions

A better solution would be to use the non-recurring $300 Million to pay down the massive state debt (Including the Unfunded Accrued Liability (“UAL” in the state retirement systems.). That would have the effect of improving the state’s bond rating as well as not exacerbating the state’s future fiscal problems.

An even better solution to the state’s fiscal woes would be to fund only state functions. Currently, the state funds solely local governmental functions as well as non-governmental organizations (“NGOs”).

If only state functions were funded there would be no need for budget cuts to any state agency.

C.B.

1 CB 8:00 am

How many times have we been told by the leges that when state revenues decline the only place to make deep cuts in the budget was higher education and healthcare?

On Friday the “Roads Scholar” unveiled his spending plan for the fiscal year that begins July 1, 2010.

Overall spending is $5 Billion less than in the current year’s initial budget. Of that amount, approximately $1 Billion is from the loss of state revenues, the rest being mostly Federal one-time dollars.

Higher Ed and Medicaid

Higher education is only sustaining a $5 Million reduction in spending, mostly by a reduction in overhead of the governing boards, not classrooms.

State spending on Medicaid is reduced by $300 Million in a $6.2 Billion program. As Congress continues to make adjustments to the Federal budget even that amount is likely to be significantly reduced.

Of the almost 3,000 state jobs being eliminated, half of the positions are currently vacant.  The remainder of the jobs will likely be lost through the state’s normal annual attrition as incumbent employees retire, quit or move to other jobs outside of state government.

The combined cuts to higher education and healthcare are roughly $305 Million of a billion dollar reduction in state revenues.

Where’d they find the other $695 Million in spending reductions?

The myth

For years we have been told by the leges that, because of our state constitution, when revenues decline the only place they can make major spending reductions is in higher education and healthcare.

The state constitution hasn’t been amended since last year.  In fact, no efforts have even put forth by the current leges to make changes in the constitutional dedications.

It was a myth and now the myth has been exposed.

There are ways to reduce state spending without cutting those things which most impact the citizens. It requires effort; something which our leges are loathe to exert.

And our leges wonder why we don’t believe them when they cry “wolf”!

C.B.

1 CB 8:00 am

Despite the national polls showing that the public is fed up with politicians; despite the message delivered by the voters in the U.S. Senate race in Massachusetts, the message has not been received by the politicians in our state.

There is another story of in-your-face arrogance by our leges in Thursday’s Daily Monopoly. ( See story here.)

House Speaker Jim Tucker and Rep. Jeff Arnold continue to believe that they are privileged and deserve better treatment than us ordinary citizens.   These same boys were leaders of the effort to give themselves massive pay raises in 2008.

Leges are by definition “pubic servants.”  They run for their respective offices telling the voters that they want to “serve” the public. Once they are elected they put themselves on a pedestal, crown themselves “princes and princesses of Louisiana” and treat us like serfs.

Remember this latest show of arrogance when Tucker runs for Lt. Governor this fall.

C.B.

1 CB 12:00 pm