Senate committee approves $7.8B budget plan
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Senate Committee Passes Budget
A Senate committee approves a $7.8 billion budget plan that attempts to close a massive deficit.Published: June 25, 2009
Updated: June 25, 2009
PROVIDENCE—A Senate committee has approved a $7.8 billion budget plan that attempts to close a massive deficit opened by a deep recession.
The Senate Finance Committee voted Thursday to approve the budget proposal, which tries to eliminate a shortfall by raising state taxes on investment income and gasoline. If the full Senate approves the plan, it will head to Gov. Don Carcieri.
The House approved it early Thursday morning.
Legislative leaders in the Democratic-dominated General Assembly have said the proposal attempts to maintain key social service programs while unemployment soars past 12 percent.
The Republican governor has criticized the plan for raising taxes but has not said whether he will veto it. Democrats hold a veto-proof majority in the General Assembly.
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dmgjjg…you get it, the GOVERNOR gets it also. Just because the state cuts aid to cities and towns that doesn’t mean we have to raise property taxes on the residents. The mayors of these cities and towns should start running their towns like a business. The taxpayers need to hold these elected officials accountable. Just look at the video with these scumbag lobbyist threatening the taxpayers with an increase to get the additional money they want for their special interest—-teacher unions, and municipal workers to fund their retirment pensions. Here’s the deal:
In the 1990’s under then-Gov Sundlun the budget was $1.5b…adjusted for inflation the budget should be somewhere between $2.5-$3.0b in today’s dollars. They just passed a $7.8b SPENDING budget in 5 MINUTES last nite…what a joke.
Here’s how to save money…it costs the avg taxpayer in RI $12,500/per public high school student. How about we shut the public schools down completely and put the students in La Salle, Hendricken, and Bayview. It’s a FAR BETTER education, LESS expensive and we do not have to pay for their retirements benefits for LIFE. They retire in their 50’s, collect a pension and have a SECOND home in FLORIDA….we see their license plates in the summer because it’s too hot in WEST PALM BEACH in the summer to stay down there. Plus they miss the grankids up here…life is just unfair to them. We are going to have to work our whole life without the possibility of retirement because the SPENDING BILL they just passed has to fund the state-employees and teachers pension fund.
DISSOLVE the state-pension system…forget about hybrid modifications and hiring experts to study this. First-year accounting majors could figure this out….the folks on Smith Hill don’t want this resolved. TAXPAYERS OF RI…..WAKE UP….THROW THE BUMS OUT before it’s too late. It’s the ninth-inning and we are down 3 runs…......ristinks!!
The real losers in this budget are the citizens who pay taxes. Prior to this budget, we were the tenth most taxed state in the nation; we are going to move higher up this dubious list. I can hear the General Assembly chanting, we’re number one we’re number!
Rather than solve the structural spending problem, they choose to play kick-the-can. They used one time revenue sources to fund the budget. What are they going to do next year, when the stimulus money runs out? I contacted my representatives and asked them to not vote for this budget. As I suspected they did not listen to me. See you in the poor house when they tax our last penny. What a shame!
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