House and senate lawmakers yesterday failed to bridge the 100 million dollar gap that separates their competing 9 billion dollar budget proposals. They’re scheduled to finish work on the budget today…….but compromise seems far off.
Negotiations unraveled yesterday after Senate lawmakers rejected a house plan to cut 38 million dollars in social services spending……That move came after the house refused a senate proposal to trim 50 million dollars from the budget without touching programs for the poor, the disabled and the elderly……When it was clear the Senate would not budge when it came to it human services spending, …..House finance chairman Neal Kurk chose to call the hearing to a close…..but not before offering a parting shot.
“It’s clear to me that the senate is not willing to face reality…..and until the time the senate can come up with some way to solve this problem there is no further reason for us to meet.”
Kurk’s decision prompted an immediate response from Senate majority leader Bob Clegg.
“Mr. Chairman you have accused us of something that you know is not the truth……and yet you walk out of this room knowing that the senate budget protects the elderly and doesn’t spend any more……Go ahead walk out of this room Mr. chairman……it doesn’t change the facts.”
Clegg’s words did little to shake Chairman Kurk’s belief that the facts, such as they are, are on his side. Kurk says the most telling, concern the additional money NH will have to spend in future budgets to continue to capture a similar level of matching federal funds. Kurk says the burden of maintaining those matches without the benefit of the 84 million dollars in federal aid NH got this year ……will ultimately force lawmakers to increase taxes and possibly kill the so-called NH advantage..
“What the senate is done is to hock everything we own to raise money in order to spend it. You are talking 200 to 250 million dollars of one time money that they want us to go and spend now to establish a high level of expenditure of commitment that we can’t take back.”
But Senate Finance Chairman Dick Green, says such claims are overstated…….and Inconsistent with budget writers historic deployment of other one-time windfalls……Green further stressed that the house’s attempts to tamp down spending for social services may not jibe with the will of the people.
“If I was the public and I knew that the state was going to do these things and I was going to say to myself, “Am I willing I pay for these things or not? I think the vast majority of people will do that. If I had a sick mother in a hospital and I had a savings account, would I take care of my mother or would I keep my money in my savings account?…..All I hear about is I want to keep my money in the savings account….but we don’t want to take care of the people.”
Governor Benson, for one, says taking care of the people includes using some of the money in the budget to replenish the rainy day fund. The Governor yesterday said he’s like to restore the drained fund to the tune of 55 million dollars. Benson also reiterated his intention to veto the budget if lawmakers don’t cut about 100 million dollars from the senate proposal…..He said to do otherwise would lead to an income tax……And on the topic of Senator Green’s hypothetical sick mother…….Benson says lawmakers have to take a longer view.
“There’s going to other sick grandmothers down the road……so we have to be prudent . And look all we are doing is duck dodge and defer all of our problems for tomorrow…and that’s where we are.”
House and senate budget writers are scheduled to resume negotiations at 10 o’clock.
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