Reports are out regarding the state budget compromise deal reached by the Senate late last night. The major changes from the orginal Senate budget proposal adds up to an additional $250 million in spending, bringing the total to $19.68 B up from $19.43 B, and include:
- $240 million more for K-12 education spending
- Eliminating the $390 million in savings from reducing teaching assistants in grades K-3, but adding back another $100 million in reductions to general LEA funding
- Reducing the tax cut plan by $50 million, by eliminating the quater-percent income tax rate reduction
In spite of the compromise, Governor Perdue’s office is still slinging the fear-mongering rhetoric. As highlighted in this Wilmington Star News Online story, a spokesperson for Perdue declared “a lot of bad things will happen if this (the Senate’s) budget passes.”
To understand this statement, a little perspective is in order. The Senate compromise budget would spend $19.68 B. Perdue’s budget plan would spend $19.9 B – for a difference of 1.1%. Moreover, when adding in federal funds, we’ll have a total General Fund operating budget of roughly $35 B. So the difference of $220 million betwen Perdue’s and the Senate’s budget plan, out of that total operating budget of $35 B, comes to a whopping six-tenths of one percent. It is this difference that the Governor’s office expects us to believe is protecting us from “bad things” happening.
Get a grip.
Why is Gov.Perdue still there? The people put her there so,the people can take her out.