I'll show you where to cut the budget Ray
Tuesday, June 16, 2009 at 03:54PM
Ray Buckley has tossed down the gauntlet (whatever Ray Buckley's gauntlet might look like) and suggested that the Republican’s stop whining about the budget and provide some suggestions on where to cut. Drew Cline provided a look at this early today here, pointing out that Buckley’s play is not any different than Obama’s, but rather than waste more time making comparisons I actually have some suggestions.
First, democrats massively overestimated revenue in the last biennium to justify all the spending they wanted in that budget and despite warnings from many Republicans, think tanks, and anyone who didn't get stuck learning "Everyday Mathematics" in the New Hampshire public school system, they passed it anyway and John Lynch signed it. So they own this. Republicans didn’t create that problem, democrats did, so don't go getting all bipartisan on us now that your heads are in a noose. You found places to add now go find them again and cut. Asking Republicans to "find places to cut the budget" is simply failing to take responsibility for democrat incompetence and you're not getting off the hook that easily.
Next, democrats appear to be responsible for all the new increased spending as well —even in this crappy economy—so while its nice to see stupidity comes with consistency they must now roll all that back; and while they are at it, if any of this just happens to affect cities and towns as Mr. Buckley has implied it might, they should all then collectively bend over and kiss the asses of every town, town council, board of alderman, and board of selectman in the entire state they have screwed over while begging forgiveness for their gross mismanagement of state government.
And any republicans that voted for these lousy budgets, get in line with the democrats and pucker up. Your in the same hole riddled sinking wreck as they are.
While it might hurt to cut back now, it will only hurt more if we wait. And if it has to hurt at all, the responsible parties should be in office when it does. That would be my kind of justice.
Now if you think more taxes and fees are the answer, start figuring out what you can do with all the free time you'll have when you don't have to drive to Concord a couple times a week after the 2010 election. May I suggest a few classes in budgets and business administration at one of our fine area community colleges?
Reader Comments (14)
From decades of Republican-controlled State Government neglect, our highways are falling apart, bridges need serious and immediate repair, education has been long shortchanged, and reductions in city, town, and county reimbursement for their services have been written into state law, resulting in higher property taxes.
What are you suggestions now? Accept Ray Buckley's legitimate call for some ideas from your side. What would YOU do?
Jim lets see, you and the Democrats were punchdrunk (still are) with power and YOUR budget was dependent on the continued boom in the housing and stock markets (that you now love to criticize), which led to a $1.6 billion increase in new spending.
Some of my cost reductions would be the following:
*State Welfare reform (generational welfare in NH is a problem)
*No more mileage reimbursements for reps and senators (suck it up)
*Sell the majority of state fleet vehicles (do more with less)
*With a downturn in the economy shouldn't the state follow suit
and whittle down the workforce?
*Have a real discussion between the state and local municipalities about regionalizing school districts. With the declining school age population (especially in the North Country)shouldn't we have an honest discussion to why every town needs their own school district? I can only assume that this would save the state quite of bit of money.
Finally, Jim what would YOU do.... oh wait, impose new taxes to bleed NH residents dry.
http://www.nhinsider.com/press-releases/2009/4/7/nh-house-republicans-offer-alternative-state-budget.html
Democrats not only rejected it but increased the problem by increasing spending. You guys created the problem and are doing everything you can to spin it to avoid taking responsibility for the mess you've created.
If you have an alternative presented to you (which you do) and you reject it then you own the problem.
I'm from northern New Hampshire. There has been a serious discussion about regionalizing schools. After much thoughful analysis and consultants reports it doesn't save much money. What saves money is cooperation on bulk purchasing such as textbooks, desks and fuel oil. This is being done, quite effectively.
Enrollment in the schools is actually increasing.
Since the most recent significant school organizational reform, something called "computers" have become commonplace. Using today's technology more efficiently could allow us to streamline admniistration, find ways to better share school facilities and equipment, and share the talent in schools as well by video conferencing. There are endless possibililties. It will take a while to realize the cost savings, but in the long run we'd have better schools statewide.
If you notice Arthur in my original post I stated that I was from northern New Hampshire. The main thread made the assumption that there would be cost savings through merging school districts "especially in northern New Hampshire." I'm stating that this isn't the case.
Enrollment in schools in northern New Hampshire is actually increasing. These fixed assets are needed.
On the subject of fixed assets if this were my policy decision, which it isn't. I'd do what northern Vermont is doing and convert school boilers from expensive heating oil to woodchips and use the cost savings to fund breakfast for both the students and the teachers.
I'm confident this won't happen. This is New Hampshire.
1) Everyone's needs can NOT be met.
2) Sometimes the challenge of doing more with less IS educational.
3) We need to stop HELPING the children the with everything. They are so helped to death, that they aren't even bothering to learn. Why bother, the adults will bail you out?
4) We need the federalis to butt out and let school boards have a larger conversation than "We have to. It's required, even if it's completely unnecessary"
5) Standardized testing only tests to see if the child is accomplished at speaking to one segment of the population. We should be measuring what the kids ARE good at doing, not why one segment of the population would never give them the time of day.
6) We have to ask ourselves, when the school district is the biggest employer in the district: "Is there a conflict of interest in voting for more money for the schools?" At what point does the school system reach a monopoly that can vote itself a raise.
Perhaps appropriate for this board.
But I don't think so. I think the starting place for you to provide some actual numbers and analysis and how your ideas would work. Specific schools and districts would be helpful as well.
I'll give you an example. If the Profile High School and Bethlehem Elementary Schools converted their fuel oil furnaces to woodchips, instead of expensive heating oil this would save taxpayers at least $325,000.00 a year. A savings that could be applied towards needed issues like replacement of 15 year old textbooks or like breakfast for some students that need it.
If you have ideas that lead somewhere Cynical then share them.
Save them all the money in woodchips you want, they will hire more people for special programs and send them for professional development meetings.
Each person they hire nets them another vote.
Each parent complaint is an excuse to add to the budget.
Where is their motivation to choose the martyrdom of thrift, when they can turn each school campus into Disneyland where all dreams come true?
That was what you said.
You only wanted to "save" to shift the "savings" to another line item in the budget.
So the point is, join a 12 step spending program.
1) We admitted we were powerless over spending—that our budgets had become unmanageable.
2) Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
3) Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of Taxpayers and voters and to understandd their limited means to fund limited government.
4) Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of governments actual constitutional function.
5) Admitted to taxpayers and voters (and to ourselves), the exact nature of our abuse of their incomes.
6) Were entirely ready to remove oursleves from office for our defects and abusive spending.
7) Humbly asked Taxpayers to vote us out of office if they deemed it necessary.
8) Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all by cutting the size and cost of government.
9) Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would creating new spending that woud hurt others.
10) Continued to take budgetary and spending inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it and cut.
11) Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with Taxpayers and spending, praying only for knowledge of their Will for us and the power to carry that out.
12) Having had a budget cutting awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to other tax and spender, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.