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Statements of House
Republican budget leaders upon governor’s signing of overspending
budget, huge tax hikes
Rep. Gary
Alexander,
Olympia, ranking Republican member of the House Appropriations
Committee:
“This budget and its 12.4
percent increase in spending are nothing to celebrate. We could have
invested in education and expanded health care without any tax increases
whatsoever, and I suspect the governor and her party know it. If they
had been committed to repeating the authentic, bipartisan Priorities of
Government process we saw in 2003, you wouldn’t hear people trying to
justify hundreds of millions of dollars in tax increases by tying them
to children, and the I-601 spending limit would still be intact.
“Republicans are committed
to protecting taxpayers against unnecessary tax increases, and keeping
the growth of government and government spending in check. We could have
come up with a no-new-taxes budget as an alternative, but it became
clear the majority party was not interested in a bipartisan process. The
governor and her party clearly have their own set of priorities, and
they’re reflected in this budget – which is less about investing in the
future than it is about paying back on past commitments.
“It’s not up to me to
decide whether the governor is breaking a commitment she made as a
candidate. But I remember the governor’s story about how she went to her
budget writers at 3 in the morning because she wasn’t happy about her
budget. How does she feel today about signing a budget that raises taxes
more than double what she proposed? The taxpayers who will be stuck with
the bill certainly won’t be happy.”
Rep. Ed Orcutt, Kalama,
ranking Republican member of the House Finance Committee:
“If the governor and her
party think the majority of Washington’s taxpayers want this budget and
this huge tax increase, then they haven’t listened to the taxpayers –
only to special interests. These bills will do absolutely nothing to
help our state’s economy and put people back to work. The tax hikes are
completely unnecessary in light of the $1.7 billion in additional
revenue we’re expecting as of the March economic forecast. Holding the
line on taxes proved to be a good strategy these past two years, judging
from the economic growth we’ve seen. But that wisdom is being ignored
today. This budget leaves taxpayers asking, ‘how much is enough?’
“This is going to take
huge amounts of money out of our economy at a time when the economic
outlook is just starting to improve. And the employers we want to
attract to Washington are going to look at this budget and wonder which
taxes will go up next, especially if the tax hikes being signed today
don’t produce as much revenue as the majority party wants. These taxes
make Oregon look even more attractive to shoppers from border counties.
“If smaller classroom
sizes are important, and I think they are, why aren't they funded first
instead of last, by tax increases -- especially by tax increases
designed to have the least backlash? The majority party says these are
'targeted' taxes, but I think it’s wrong to take aim at the taxpayer.
“The governor said her own
budget wasn’t sustainable, yet she’s willing to sign a budget that is
built on shuffling money and tapping dedicated funds even more than hers
was – a budget that leaves less than 1 percent in reserve and will be in
a whole lot of trouble if housing sales fall off or the price of gas
remains at high levels.
“The Speaker of the House
said on the session’s first day that his party was ‘serious about
revving up the state’s economic engine.’ But the only thing revved up by
this budget are tax increases, at the expense of the taxpayers, and at
the expense of economic growth.”
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For more information, contact:
Brendon Wold, Public
Information Officer: (360) 786-7698
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