Op-Ed: Getting a State Budget We Deserve

July 29, 2008
By Eva Bonime and Jon Shure
 

If you quit your job and can't pay your bills, is that a spending problem? Not really. It's an income problem.

Or, if you are in danger of losing your home because you simply decided not to pay the mortgage, is that a spending problem? Sounds more like a failure to meet your responsibilities.

It's no different for a state than for a family. For a decade, the stewards of New Jersey's finances did a downright terrible job. They cut the state income tax, which led directly to higher property taxes, because all the revenue from the former is dedicated under the state constitution to relieving the burden of the latter. When creating new programs, they took money away from existing ones instead of responsibly creating new revenue sources. Short of money because of the tax cuts, they skipped years of payments into state employee pension and health care funds.

And to top it all off - or cover it all up - they borrowed heavily to make up the difference. In effect, the state relied on the stock market to make things right, placing a big bet on Wall Street that it lost.

Meanwhile, the state's needs continue to grow.

The recent response from Trenton is puzzling. Governor Corzine signed a budget in June that reduces spending by $600 million, and legislative leaders hailed it as the first significant step toward getting New Jersey's finances in order.

No question, those finances are messed up. But you can't solve a problem if you don't recognize what caused it. No matter how many times elected officials say so, New Jersey's problem is not overspending. It's underinvesting.

Are the state's roads too smooth? Are the bridges too safe?

Is tuition at Rutgers and other state colleges too low?

Are K-12 class sizes too small?

Is our air too clean?

Do too many people have health insurance?

Of course, the answer to all of those questions is "no." So how does cutting state spending make New Jersey a better, stronger, more prosperous place? Hint: It doesn't.

A better route

There is a better way. Over the past few months, the Better Choices Budget Campaign has traveled across New Jersey with a call for a fresh, new dialogue about New Jersey's future. Yes, spending needs to be part of that conversation. But it has to be as part of a comprehensive look at all of New Jersey's needs and priorities - including how much they would cost and how to pay for them.

Unfortunately, Corzine and the Legislature have taken a step away from this by enacting a "wrong choices" budget.

People tell us they want better choices. In meetings and opinion polling, New Jerseyans made it clear to us that they are ahead of the politicians when it comes to addressing New Jersey's situation. They are tired of one-dimensional "solutions" that suggest that if only government did less, things would improve. They even support reasonable, fair, environmentally sound revenue plans so the state can do more to help people reach their full potential.

What might that include? For starters, raising the state income tax on earnings between $250,000 and $500,000 would raise over $440 million and affect only 4 percent of households. Tripling registration fees on the biggest, heaviest, most gas-guzzling vehicles would bring in $140 million. Closing corporate tax loopholes and reducing subsidies to businesses (the new budget actually raised such subsidies by more than $40 million) would free up $300 million.

All told, the Better Choices campaign came up with nearly $1 billion for investing in New Jersey and its people. More than 30 organizations signed on to our effort.

Shortsighted moves

Granted, budget cuts make headlines. On the surface, they might sound like progress. But in the context of what it will really take to improve New Jersey's quality of life, they are shortsighted.

Aid cuts and rebate reductions mean property taxes keep going up, and that's the tax that crushes New Jersey's middle class.

College tuitions will keep going up, and hospitals will have less capacity to handle emergencies, especially for the growing number of people not fortunate enough to be insured.

Some say New Jersey residents must learn they can't have everything they want. Well, how about everything they need? We're not even doing that, and the new state budget goes farther down the wrong road.

False savings are a far cry from investments.
 
 
 
Originally published here: http://www.northjersey.com/opinion/moreviews/26026684.html