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Rep. Alexander's statement
on House Democrat budget proposal
'Washington
citizens need long-term leadership, not short-term fixes,' says
Alexander
Rep.
Gary Alexander, R-Olympia, and ranking Republican on the House Ways
and Means Committee, issued the following statement today regarding the
House Democrat budget proposal:
"Washington citizens need long-term leadership, not short-term fixes.
Placing a Band-Aid on our budget problems in hopes of a better economy
in the future, or for voter-approved tax increases down the road, is the
wrong approach.
"It appears House Democrat budget writers followed a similar formula to
their Senate Democrat counterparts in that they rely entirely too much
upon one-time state and federal money. They propose to spend $5
billion that we know will not be available the next time we sit down to
write a budget. What happens then? We're delaying the inevitable
and setting ourselves up for more problems tomorrow by not exercising
true leadership today.
"I'm also dismayed at the cavalier attitude the majority party is
showing in regards to referencing and spending federal tax dollars.
I think we need to remember that no government -- local, state or
federal -- has any money of its own. It all comes from taxpayers
at some point. It seems their attitude is to thank President Obama
for his generosity at the taxpayers' expense because he helped cover the
mistakes they made in the last four years of unfettered spending.
"We're settling for the easy way out if we just focus on the reductions
being made and not on the opportunity we have to make state government
more accountable, more efficient and more responsible to the people.
"Yes, both the House and Senate budgets made cuts. But the
families in our state are doing much more than just cutting things in
their own budgets to get by. Families are prioritizing their
needs, they're finding different ways to get things done, and they're
changing the way they go about their daily routines to streamline their
own finances. Families realize that 'business as usual' won't work
for them. Shouldn't state government do the same?
"I said it when the Senate released their budget and I'll say it again:
Borrowing against our future, relying upon one-time money, and hoping
for a tax increase at the ballot is not the type of leadership our state
needs right now."
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For more information, contact:
Brendon Wold, Senior
Information Officer: (360) 786-7698
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