Gov.
Ritter presented his Fiscal Year 2010-11 budget proposal to the
legislature’s Joint Budget Committee today. His remarks as prepared for
delivery are below. Click here to read the news release summarizing the budget proposal, or download the attached PowerPoint presentation, or visit the Governor’s Budget Office website for additional information.
Here are Gov. Ritter’s remarks:
Mr.
Chairman, members of the Committee and other members of the General
Assembly, good afternoon. Today I am presenting you with my Fiscal Year
10-11 budget proposal. Thank you for allowing me and Todd to spend a
few minutes reviewing the plan and answering your questions.
Before
I start, I’d like to acknowledge the hard work that Todd, his staff and
the budget staffs in all of the departments have put into this. This is
a new economic reality, and these folks have been balancing and re-balancing the 09-10 budget for months, closing $2 billion in shortfalls, while also preparing the 10-11 budget.
I
also want to thank all of you for your thoughtful, hard work. Your
efforts are critical for all Coloradans. Thank you for working so
closely with us during the interim. These are challenging times, and
we’re always more productive when we work together as stubborn stewards of taxpayer dollars. I look forward to continuing that spirit of collaboration and cooperation on the 10-11 budget.
As
we all know, families and businesses across Colorado are tightening
their belts and struggling to get through the worst economy since the
Great Depression. Even though we’ve been able to keep Colorado’s
economy strong, too many people have lost their jobs, their healthcare
and even their homes.
We’re
doing everything possible to help those who are living on the margins.
And while our economy is beginning to recover, a state revenue recovery
will always lag an economic recovery by at least a year. So the 10-11
budget will be our most challenging yet.
The
budget I’m presenting today is balanced, but we had to close a
billion-shortfall in order to balance it. I’m proposing things in this
budget we haven’t had to do before:
· A 4.6 percent reduction in total K-12 program funding.
· Adjusting 13 out of 100 current special tax credits and exemptions.
· And reducing total compensation by 2½ percent for executive branch employees.
I’m asking everyone to share in the sacrifice, from schools to businesses to state workers. Everyone needs to do their part.
School funding has increased steadily for nearly a decade, and now is almost half the General Fund budget.
On
the tax credits and exemptions, most of the changes we’re proposing are
temporary, and they do no harm to the most important ones, such as
food, medicine and manufacturing parts. These changes also won’t hurt
our competitive edge and our ability to recover.
Overall, many of the choices in this budget are not easy, and they certainly won’t be popular. But in this economy, they are necessary. Quite frankly, we’re running out of options even while the demand for many services is skyrocketing.
I truly believe that by sharing in these sacrifices, by working together, we’ll get through this tough time stronger, quicker and healthier.
This is a fair and balanced budget – figuratively and literally.
It continues the cost-cutting and streamlining that’s been underway for over a year,
in a way that minimizes pain, protects public safety, maintains
essential services, and preserves programs that promote job-creation
and economic growth.
It reflects that we’re continuing to fundamentally re-think the way government does business, that we’re making government leaner, more nimble and more efficient.
This is our new economic reality, and we have to build a government that can thrive in these new conditions.
When
I took office three years ago, we set about changing Colorado: making
us a leader in the New Energy Economy, in improving our education
system, and in growing a modern, 21st century economy.
The
budget I’m submitting today will allow us to continue making those
changes and to continue to be stubborn about creating a better future
for our children and our grandchildren.
Like families and businesses in every corner of the state, we have to live within our budget.
But
our commitment, our goals and our strategies for helping families, for
creating the best schools in the country and for keeping our small
businesses competitive remain as ambitious as ever.
Thank you.
