$606,000,000 in the Red
Markell’s reality check is coming to a town near you.
“Government can no longer pretend that it has all the answers,” Markell said during the briefing in the Tatnall Building in Dover. “It has to be willing to ask the tough questions, and more importantly, be willing to hear the hard truth of honest answers and bear the cost of shared sacrifice. Failure to make hard decisions and the failure to examine with honest eyes every aspect of state government can carry an unbearable cost.”
I’m sure the reponse from some quarters will be calls for more corporate welfare and more tax cuts.
Tax cuts are magical! Where’s my unicorn?
I got your unicorn.
http://www.faithmouse.com/unicorn.jpg
Al Mascitti just had an extraordinarily lucid segment on why we need higher property taxes.
I hope they podcast it.
Mascitti is talking about a State property tax to pay for schools. That makes sense for a lot of reasons. However, I’m hearing that it will take a 40% hike in New Castle County property tax to keep that government afloat. Has anybody thought about savings by going Metro and combining NCC with City of Wilmington? It has worked in other places. Of course here, the City is solvent and the County is broke. Usually it’s the other way around.
This would be a good time for Council to be cut back in size. The expansion has obviously been a huge failure…just one more place for labor to dump a few more cronies.
I’m warm to PI’s idea. The expansion was contentious to begin with. Of course, I think that has to be a state action, right? Didn’t it take state legislation to expand it? There is one condition, though, that I’d like to have. Assuming it would go back to six districts. one of the districts has to be the canal and south. Someone representing MOT should at least be a resident below the ditch!!!!
Wait, make that two requests…if that happens, Chris Roberts does not run for office…if he’s even eligible.
The metro idea takes several years to even assess and a huge amount of money, no way Baker would even consider it.
the City is solvent and the County is broke. Usually it’s the other way around.
A few years ago it was the other way around. And NCCo provided funds to the City to support additional police officers and some equipment upgrades for 3 years, expenses that the City took over last year, I think. I’ve seen both Coons and Baker asked about this Metro idea a few times and both are always quick to say No.
How much money could be saved by doing away with the Public Advocate Office ?
No public statements on behalf of the consumer have come from that office in years . Not in the matter of deregulation nor in the battle to approve the windpower project
Noone even can identify the public Advocate, how many other of these “crony do nothing jobs are out there”?
Some Washington group sent out a report yesterday listing each state and how much money each state “could” receive through the stimulus package. Delaware was listed as “less than $5 billion”. So I quickly dashed the report off to our legislators and heard back from two. They said, “you shouldnt put this information out because the stimulus package is not a done deal”. True nuff, however, we know according to the budget office, that Delaware like every other state, are going to get money. If we owe $600M, and get even $lM….I call that being in the black.
“If we owe $600M, and get even $lM….I call that being in the black.”
Assuming you meant $1B, you’re still wrong. That’s one-time money, and the deficit is something that will continue as long as the economy is bad. Even after it recovers, state revenue won’t bounce all the way back, because the auto plants will be gone and banks will be consolidated.
Treating a one-time windfall as a solution would be exactly the wrong thing to do.
Geezer you got me there. It is 1 B. But, don’t we have all these “suits” and wise guys like Alan Levine who are going to bring jobs to Delaware. My problem is they have no problem cutting those who cant possibly take the cuts, but the State workers….they have nothing to worry about. Why is that? Maybe because they have a organized lobby called a union. Who is the biggest employer in Delaware, at one point it was in the top 3. Not sure where it is now. If companies can downsize….why not the State? Why are they exempt? Maybe state workers should have to pay their own health insurance? Maybe they should forego their state pensions? Maybe its time State workers get off the nanny state dole, and join regular citizens, without a safety net.
Liz
You say
Noone even can identify the public Advocate, how many other of these “crony do nothing jobs are out there”?
There is a reason, nothing was ever done .
Go to:
http://publicadvocate.delaware.gov
it starts with:
Welcome to the web-site of the Division of the Public Advocate (DPA). The fundamental mission of the DPA is to advocate the lowest reasonable rates for consumers, consistent with the maintenance of adequate utility service and consistent with an equitable distribution of rates among all classes of consumers. We who work in the DPA strive to carry out this mission in a diligent, principled, and compassionate manner.
An Office and STAFF to do what ?
I’d be willing to listen.
“how many other of these “crony do nothing jobs are out there”?
I can name a few more.
We need to combine all school districts into 3, one in each county.
Enact single payer health care immediately. Will cover all citizens and any business looking for a new home would rush here.
Enact the Del. Substance Abuse & Rehabilitation Act. End the revolving door to prisons, start drug treatment instead of incarceration. Could save millions is this program.
As corporations are having to downsize, the State must as well. Am sick of the politicans saying “but we wont cut state workers” WTF, why are they exempt?
Increase tax/fee on business’s who incorporate in the State. Many have a post office box, and have no staff therefore are “using” the state, without contributing to it.
What about the Public Guardian? who is it, who are they guarding?