Salem needs a 'Back to Basics' approach to the budget plan

May 21, 2009

Throughout the 2009 session, politicians at the State Capitol have argued that tax and fee increases are desperately needed to balance the state budget. This argument reveals a growing disconnect between state leaders and the realities that Oregonians are facing every day.

With a declining state economy and the second highest unemployment rate in the nation, I do not believe Oregon families and businesses can afford to send more of their hard earned dollars to Salem.

A few days before the May 2009 revenue forecast, I joined my House and Senate colleagues in announcing the Back to Basics budget plan.

The plan funds a full school year and protects priority service areas such as public safety and human services by giving them the same funding levels they received in the last two-year budget. The Back to Basics budget requires state government to live within its means, and maintains critical programs and services at a cost taxpayers can afford.

To protect these priorities, the Back to Basics budget uses $911 million in Federal Stimulus money and $457 million from the Rainy Day and Education Stability Funds, leaving $457 million left in reserves. The budget also uses $429 million in savings and efficiency enhancements. After funding each core service at their 2007-09 level, the budget leaves a $1.37 billion surplus for the legislature to make targeted add-backs to the most important priorities.

In developing this budget plan, we applied the same philosophy that Oregon families and small businesses are applying to their budgets: fund what is most important with what we have, tighten our belt and be fiscally responsible.

The Back to Basics budget also represents a brand new approach to state budgeting. In the past, the Legislature has consistently increased spending on state agencies without requiring them to justify why they need more taxpayer dollars. The result is out of control spending and insurmountable deficits. In fact, over the last 10 years our state budget has increased by more than 75 percent.

The current way the state spends your money needs to change. The Back to Basics budget is a first step in a different direction.

This budget is based on priorities, on performance and on transparency. It’s time for government to start making tough decisions and manage your taxpayer dollars with responsibility.

As the Legislature works to pass a 2009-11 state budget, we must remember how we got into this crisis in the first place. The state government has lost tax revenues because Oregon families and businesses have lost tens of billions in wages and investments.

Let’s get back to basics, and resume the hard work of creating jobs and putting our economy back on track.