Corzine instructs Cabinet:
Prepare for cuts
Public forums to address budget
as all branches brace for slashes
Wednesday, March 01, 2006 • BY JOE DONOHUE •
Star-Ledger Staff
Facing a multibillion-dollar budget gap,
Gov. Jon Corzine has ordered his Cabinet members to prepare
for major cuts in all operations of state government --
including the billions in aid and grants the state doles out
each year.
Corzine, who will unveil his state budget
on March 21, will hold three public meetings next week to
discuss the state's predicament with residents.
All departments were ordered to submit
contingency plans to slash their budgets by 5 percent, 10
percent and 15 percent, according a Jan. 25 memo sent by
Charlene Holzbaur, director of the Office of Management and
Budget.
The memo says Cabinet officers should
assume staffing reductions of 5 percent to 10 percent, and
the budget cuts should also apply to all spending --
including state aid to towns and school districts and grants
to colleges and a wide range of programs.
Cuts that deep could save $1.4 billion to
$4.2 billion. Corzine's latest estimate of the state budget
gap is in the $4 billion range.
"We are faced with a significant
projected shortfall in fiscal year 2007 budget," Holzbaur
said in her letter. "Therefore, we must work together to
achieve Gov. Corzine's goal of presenting a balanced budget
and enhancing the fiscal solvency of the state. This will be
a difficult task but it must be achieved."
The plans will be used to help Corzine
prepare a budget for the fiscal year that begins July
1.
An administration official who requested
anonymity said the budget cuts "will be deep and they will
be significant." But the official said they will not
necessarily be as deep as 15 percent in all departments and
that exceptions will be made for court-mandated programs
such as the reform of the state's child welfare
program.
The official said like previous
governors, Corzine has asked for the detailed contingency
plans to help him determine which course to take.
In a separate memo to all Cabinet members
also dated Jan. 25, Corzine himself announced a hiring
freeze and said no exceptions would be made unless they are
approved by his office.
"As you know, the large budget deficit we
faced in fiscal year 2007 has been years in the making, and
the government of New Jersey has run out of many options,"
he said.
Yesterday, a monthly update by the
nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services said most major
revenues, including the income and corporate taxes, are
exceeding earlier forecasts. The report covers revenues from
the first seven months of the current fiscal
year.
However, Assemblyman Louis Greenwald
(D-Camden), chairman of the Assembly Budget Committee, said
the improved outlook should not lead to
complacency.
"These higher-than-anticipated revenues
do not mean that spending should increase one penny before
all waste and mismanagement are eliminated," he
said.
Assemblyman Michael Doherty (R-Hunterdon)
yesterday urged Corzine and Democratic leaders in the
Legislature to resist solving the budget crisis with higher
taxes. Doherty said a new study by the conservative Tax
Foundation in Washington found New Jersey has the highest
property taxes, the fourth-highest income tax burden and the
second-least-hospitable business tax climate among the 50
states.
"New Jersey has become unaffordable for
many families and businesses alike," he said.
Corzine's public meetings on the budget
will be held Tuesday at Montclair State University,
Wednesday at Monmouth University in West Long Branch and
Thursday at Rowan University in Glassboro. All three
meetings begin at 7 p.m.
People who want to attend must RSVP at
www.state.nj.us/budget06/dialogues/.
Joe Donohue covers state government and politics. He may
be reached at jdonohue@starledger.com or (609) 989-0208.
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