Senate, Assembly Republicans Offer Corzine a Plan to Save $783 Mln

Republican members of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee have joined with their colleagues in the Assembly to prepare a blueprint for change that Governor Corzine can adopt to save taxpayers $783 million. These are ideas that will generate savings the governor can use to help businesses create desperately needed jobs or to return money to taxpayers crying out for help with their mounting bills during this recession.

"We need change in Trenton," said Senator Kevin O'Toole. "Adopting this blueprint for change would generate money this state desperately needs to weather the recession and move forward boldly toward economic recovery."

The committee members said they won't support the governor's budget because of its reliance on $1 billion in tax increases that will boost unemployment and because of the governor's use of gimmicks that will leave our children and grandchildren saddled with debt for decades.

"Governor Corzine has proposed pension gimmicks, debt gimmicks, and even education aid gimmicks that will burden taxpayers with billions of dollars of debt next year and into the future," Senator Marcia Karrow said. "We urge the governor to take this Republican blueprint for savings and use it to eliminate as many gimmicks as possible before it's too late."

The blueprint for change reduces spending on overfunded programs, freeing up money for budget relief. If the governor refuses to make these common-sense changes, New Jersey will be in far worse shape financially next year than at any time in its history, the senators said.

"No government can keep spending more than it can afford forever," Senator Steve Oroho said. "The can that Governor was kicking down the road has turned into a barrel. This budget relies so heavily on billions of dollars of federal aid, pension deferrals and 'temporary' tax increases that it will inevitably leave us next year in the most dire straits fiscally that this state has ever seen."

Governor Corzine has ignored potential savings that could be used to support vital programs for taking care of the developmentally disabled, protect the public by training emergency medical technicians and create jobs through beach replenishment and support for the arts, Senator Phil Haines said.

"This governor adopted a few Republican ideas for stimulating the economy, but has no new ones of his own," Senator Haines said. "We are offering the governor $783 million that could be used for a real economic development program that would help New Jersey lead the region out of recession."

"At a time when aging workers and retirees all across the state are afraid that no money will be there to provide them with a safe and secure future retirement, Governor Corzine is proposing the biggest underfunding of state pensions in history," Senator Joseph Pennacchio said. "Someone needs to pull the alarm and warn the middle class workers of this state that the governor is not looking out after their future. We have identified $783 million that the governor could use to eliminate at least some of the multi-billion deficit in the state's pension funds."

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