Fitzsimon File

Good for Senate President Pro Tem Marc Basnight.

After an election season that brought us politicians of both parties promising to cut taxes and signing an absurd pledge to never vote for any tax increase, Basnight offered an all too rare dose of common sense recently about the budget crisis facing state lawmakers.

Basnight refused to rule out raising taxes or leaving in place the temporary tax hikes passed in 2001 that are set to expire this year. And he refused for the right reason, telling the News and Observer that now is not the time to be talking about taxes, that lawmakers first should determine the needs of the state.

Imagine that. State lawmakers actually assessing the needs of the state first, then finding the money to pay for them.

Basnight’s comments came in the latest story about the budget shortfall, which provided some updated numbers and a reminder of how unbalanced the policy debate is about the state’s priorities.

Letting the 2001 tax increases expire would cost the state roughly $500 million. Then add in money needed to replace some of the budget maneuvers used last session and you start with a hole of $1.2 billion. Those maneuvers included using a combination of temporary revenue, one-time budget cuts, and transferring money from other funds to balance the budget.

That hole does not include funds to pay for increased enrollment at public schools, universities, and community colleges or money to keep Medicaid and the state employees health plan at current levels. Then there are the teacher bonuses that are part of the standardized testing program in public schools, increased money for debt service to pay off the state’s bonds, and a small pay raise for teachers and state workers. That adds up to another billion dollars.

State budget officials are likely to base next year’s budget on a growth rate that would bring in slightly more than a billion dollars more than this year. That leads most folks to then say that with $2 billion in obligations and a forecast of $1 billion in increased revenue that the shortfall is $1 billion.

The latest story mentions roads, water and sewer projects and classrooms as a list of growing demands and then there is Governor Easley’s More at Four program for at risk kids. There is also talk of federal cuts to Medicaid, which the state might choose to make up. Any of those things pushes the budget hole to more than a billion dollars.

But nowhere in the news stories or the budget shortfall estimates is money for human service programs. Just keeping waiting lists for day care subsidies and in-home health care for seniors and disabled adults at current unacceptable levels will take money.

Same for making sure eligible children can enroll in Health Choice, the state’s health care coverage for kids from low-income families. There are community mental health programs that need more funding, the shortage of school nurses, the AIDS Drug Assistance Program, affordable housing, and on and on.

Still think the shortfall is just $1 billion?

It is troubling that the state budget picture is always painted without including any of these vital services. Surely no one thinks that reducing the waiting list for day care subsidies is not a pressing need of the state, or that programs to reduce the high school drop out rate are not important. Substance abuse programs that keep people out of prison and at their jobs are widely supported.

To change the debate, we need to change the conversation. Basnight deserves credit for starting that shift in the way we talk about the state budget process. Figure out the needs of the state first before making any promises about taxes.

Now we need to make sure that every conversation about those needs includes the programs that serve the people across the state who need our help to get back on their feet, or stay in school, or finally get treatment for their mental illness.

 Email This Post  Print This Post

This entry was posted on Monday, January 3rd, 2005 at 8:56 pm and is filed under Fitzsimon File. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.