Budgets

Calls For No New Spending in Lame Duck

November 5, 2009 -- TRENTON - New Jersey Governor Jon S. Corzine today outlined several measures needed to maintain balance in the FY 2010 budget and fulfill his commitment to maintain a balanced budget through his remaining two months in office.

"My administration will continue to live up to our responsibility to maintain a fiscally balanced budget during the next two months," Governor Corzine said. "These cuts will be tough but necessary choices that need to be addressed now. Ignoring these issues over the next two months will not make them go away and will only hurt the people of New Jersey. I will not allow politics to stand in the way of doing what is right."    » read more »

Moody’s, Fitch, S&P affirm Commonwealth’s ‘AA’ credit rating with stable outlook following Governor’s FY10 budget solutions

BOSTON – Thursday, November 05, 2009 – Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick today announced that the Commonwealth's bond ratings have been affirmed by the three major rating agencies, all of whom cited the Governor’s responsible and proactive stewardship of the Commonwealth’s finances during the current economic downturn as a leading credit strength.

Fitch Ratings, Moody's Investor Services and Standard & Poor's all affirmed the Commonwealth's credit ratings at AA, Aa2, and AA with a stable outlook.    » read more »

November 5, 2009 -- NEWARK – Delaware’s one-time tax amnesty program is anticipated to net more than $22 million for the state, Delaware Governor Jack Markell announced Thursday.

The two-month long partnership between the Delaware Division of Revenue and the General Revenue Corporation, a subsidiary of Sallie Mae Corporation, is expected to clear more than 14,000 delinquent accounts. When the program was authorized this summer, estimates called for $10 million to be collected.

“During these challenging times, it is certainly good news that Delaware will have additional funds to help government meet its core commitments, like teachers in the classroom, police on the street and care for our most vulnerable citizens,” Markell said.    » read more »

November 3, 2009 -- NEW YORK, N.Y.—Today, Office of Management and Budget Director Peter R. Orszag delivered a speech at New York University entitled "Rescue, Recovery, and Reining in the Deficit." Director Orszag’s appearance is sponsored by New York University and the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at NYU. His prepared remarks are below.

Thank you for that kind introduction; thank you, President Sexton, for the invitation to come speak here today, and thank you all for your warm welcome.    » read more »

Markell lays out “five foundations” for making state government smaller and more cost-effective during budget process in advance of OMB hearings

November 2, 2009 -- WILMINGTON – State government will have at least 1,000 fewer positions than it did in the beginning of his term this January, Delaware Governor Jack Markell announced today. As the Office of Management and Budget begins a month of budget hearings, the Governor laid out five foundations he and his Cabinet are using to make government work more efficiently and cost-effectively to reduce the size and cost of state government.    » read more »

Nov. 2, 2009 -- Colorado Governor Bill Ritter today submitted a $1.03 billion Fiscal Year 2010-11 transportation budget proposal to the legislature's Joint Budget Committee, a 6 percent increase from this year's $973.5 million.

Colorado's new FASTER law is fueling the much-needed increase, generating an estimated $160.6 million for the state's FY10-11 budget for bridge and roadway repair and safety work. An additional $61.1 million will go directly to local agencies from FASTER. Sponsored by Sen. Dan Gibbs and Rep. Joe Rice, FASTER (Funding Advancements for Surface Transportation and Economic Recovery) also will save and create thousands of jobs statewide.    » read more »

Panel will advise ways to boost efficiency, save taxpayer dollars

October 29, 2009 -- WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mark R. Warner (D-VA) today convened the first meeting of the U.S. Senate Budget Committee’s new Task Force on Government Performance. The bipartisan Task Force will examine the federal government’s management framework, recommend ways to improve the efficiency of federal programs and services, and identify potential taxpayer savings.    » read more »

October 28, 2009 -- THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Please, everybody be seated.

Good afternoon. I have often said that meeting our greatest challenges would require not only changing policies in Washington but changing the way business is done in Washington; that it would require a government that's more efficient and effective and less influenced by lobbyists and parochial politics. And I'm pleased to say that when it comes to the defense bill I'm about to sign into law, we've taken some important steps towards that goal.    » read more »

October 19, 2009 -- LANSING -- Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today signed the state school aid budget bill for the 2010 fiscal year, but warned that the budget presented to her by the legislature is seriously underfunded.

"The school aid budget presented to me is inadequately funded," Granholm said. "If this school aid bill were a check drawn on a bank, it would be returned for insufficient funds. To bring the budget into balance, I have vetoed $54 million in appropriations. But even these reductions will not fully resolve the shortfall.    » read more »

October 17, 2009 -- SANTA FE -- New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson today proposed his adjusted plan to deal with the state budget shortfall as lawmakers head into a special budget legislative session. Governor Richardson spent the day laying out his plan to lawmakers and stressing his priorities of saving jobs and making sure education is not harmed by major cuts.

“I have made adjustments to my original budget proposal to reflect our new budget realities. But just like my original plan, this is a fiscally responsible package with minimum cuts to services and one that avoids layoffs and furloughs,” Governor Bill Richardson said. “I have made it very clear to legislators that any cuts to education must be minimal and not affect our classrooms, kids and teachers."    » read more »

Washington, DC – Earlier this week Congressman Rob Andrews announced that the House and Senate Armed Services Committees have reached agreement on the conference report to H.R. 2647, the Fiscal Year 2010 National Defense Authorization Act. This legislation authorizes $550.2 billion in budget authority for the Department of Defense (DOD) and the national security programs of the Department of Energy (DOE). The bill also authorizes $130 billion to support overseas contingency operations during fiscal year 2010.    » read more »

State Senate needs to meet constitutional requirement on budget

October 14, 2009 -- LANSING - Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today signed fiscal year 2010 appropriations bills for the departments of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environmental Quality, bringing the total number of budget bills she's signed to eight.

"Much work remains to be done on the budget," Granholm said. "The budget does not become law until I sign all of the budget bills. The Senate majority leader needs to deliver to me all the budget bills as required by the constitution.    » read more »

October 14, 2009 -- DES MOINES – Iowa Governor Chet Culver announced today that, as state government begins to implement a 10% across-the-board cut in spending, he is going to reduce his state salary by ten percent.

“This national economic recession has meant financial sacrifices for everyone across the State of Iowa, and it should be no different for me” said Governor Culver. “As Iowans face reduced state services and many state employees face the likelihood of layoffs, my office will lead by example in making budget cuts and it will begin with my salary. We must face this challenge together.”

The salary for the Governor of Iowa is $130,000 as determined by state law.    » read more »

Payments for Social Services, Education, Others to Begin Soon

Oct. 9, 2009 -- Harrisburg – Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell signed legislation today to enact a $27.799 billion state General Fund budget for 2009-10 that increases education funding while reducing overall spending. It contains no new broad-based taxes.

State-dollar spending is $1.9 billion lower than in 2008-09. When $2.6 billion in federal stimulus dollars are included, the new budget still spends $524 million less than last year.    » read more »

Arizona lawmaker also addresses solar energy at Sea Space Symposium

October 9, 2009 -- WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords today cited the need for a “robust” NASA budget, saying space exploration can inspire and benefit the nation during difficult economic times.

Giffords, chairwoman of the House Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics, told participants at the Sea Space Symposium that she was not surprised by concerns over NASA’s budget in the recently released summary report of the Review of U.S. Human Space Flight Plans Committee. Next year’s proposed budget for the agency represents 0.52 percent of the entire federal budget, the lowest percentage in decades.    » read more »