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Jay Finegan, 287-1445
May 19, 2009  
Bonnie Gould, 287-6557
     
Republican Leaders Hail Bipartisan Budget Agreement

Raye and Tardy: GOP injected “common sense solutions” into budget plan

AUGUSTA – The top Republican leaders in the Legislature are hailing the bipartisan agreement on the two-year state budget.

“The bipartisan budget agreement is an example of how the people’s government should work,” said Sen. Kevin Raye (R-Washington County), leader of the Senate Republicans. “State revenues have fallen below projections by over one billion since last November, so obviously the committee had to make many difficult choices, but we believe that it is on balance, a responsible and affordable spending plan.”

“From the outset of the legislative session, Republicans pledged that we would work in good faith with the Governor and the Democratic majority to craft a responsible budget that reins in the unsustainable growth of state government, prioritizes public safety, education, and a safety net for our most vulnerable citizens,” said Raye. “We are proud that we were able to inject the principles from our common sense agenda into the budget.”

Rep. Josh Tardy (R-Newport), leader of the House Republicans, said GOP leaders staked out budget priorities after reviewing the governor’s budget proposals. The latest, released May 1, reduced total state spending over the next two years from $6.1 billion to $5.8 billion.

Raye echoed his House counterpart’s statement: “We took seriously our responsibility to help improve the Governor’s original proposal in a number of ways, including:

- preserving the standard deduction for Maine taxpayers who do not itemize;
- significantly restoring income tax indexing;
- lessening the cut in revenue-sharing with municipalities;
- reducing the cuts to the Circuit Breaker and Homestead programs;
- honoring our commitment to reimburse the hospitals for past Medicaid services;
- building in structural reform that puts us on a path toward a more affordable MaineCare program in the future; and
- asking state employees to share in the reform and savings of state government.”

When the Governor unveiled his initial proposal, Republicans immediately expressed their determination to soften the impact on taxpayers and increase the amount of ongoing savings in the budget. Following through on those commitments, GOP legislators were able to save Maine taxpayers $34 million from the governor’s proposal in the areas of tax indexing and preserving conformity to the federal tax code. They also championed a provision to bring state employee health insurance more in line with the private sector, by requiring state employees to contribute to the cost of their health care.

Based upon income, state employees will pay between 5% and 15% of their health insurance premiums, with the ability to buy back a portion through wellness incentives. “This really is an issue of equity with the general public,” said Tardy. “Very few private employers pay 100% of an employee’s coverage. This initiative builds upon the measure advanced by Rep. Windol Weaver (R-York) who sponsored legislation requiring state employees to pay 15% of the cost of coverage.”

Another area of savings pushed by Republicans resulted in a 5% reduction in taxpayer funded campaigns. “At a time when we are asking Mainers to tighten their belts, it is only fair to ask candidates for office to contribute as well,” explained Tardy.

Sen. Raye added: “We are pleased that, working together, the committee was able to restore some funding for adult education, reduce cuts in funding to children in residential care, and fund the Health Info Net, an electronic medical records system which will provide quicker more reliable information to doctors and hospitals. These programs are vital to the future health and economic success of all Maine people.”

Both leaders agreed that Maine is facing unprecedented times which call for real bipartisan cooperation to make sure the state weathers the storm and emerges stronger. “Republicans, while working with our Democratic colleagues, held firm to our principles of a more caring, responsible, efficient, affordable, transparent, and effective government. We believe that through the structural reforms we were able to secure, that we have preserved the safety net for our most vulnerable citizens, started our education and MaineCare systems on more sustainable paths, and moved Maine toward a stronger financial future,” concluded Raye.

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