DeCROCE HOPES CORZINE IS SINCERE IN PROPOSING A BUDGET WITH REAL SPENDING CUTS AND NO NEW TAXES

Assembly Republican Leader Alex DeCroce said today he is encouraged by what he has been hearing from the Corzine administration that it may have finally heard what the people want and will deliver a budget to the Legislature tomorrow that concentrates on fiscal restraint and spending cuts instead of new taxes and “revenue raisers” such as higher tolls.

“Assembly Republicans are prepared to work with Governor Corzine and legislative Democrats on a budget that will help restore the fiscal integrity of the state by making real cuts and placing real restraints on future state spending and borrowing,” said DeCroce, R-Morris and Passaic.

“What we will not do is be a party to any plan that would lower or eliminate direct property tax relief for middle class families. We are prepared to show how cuts can be made in waste and non-essential state programs that have not been targeted by the governor so the taxpayers do not have to suffer anymore pain.”

DeCroce said he hopes Corzine and legislative Democrats stop talking about “how the sky is falling” in an attempt to scare people into believing higher taxes or higher tolls are necessary to prevent an impending financial calamity when that is not the case.

“Corzine was clear in his budget address last year that we did not need to raise taxes or go down the path of  asset monetization,” DeCroce recalled. “The governor said we could stand pat and pull together a ‘no frill’ budget, but he didn’t want to do that. Corzine said the only reason for his decision to push for asset monetization was so he could create a pot of new money to spend on new programs, which he euphemistically called ‘investments for our future.’

“Over the past year, Corzine spent millions of dollars hoping to convince the taxpayers he was right and that New Jersey really needed an 800 percent toll increase and $38 billion in new debt. The people rejected the idea and his underlying premise that we need more programs and more spending.

“If it takes ‘duct tape and bailing wire’ – a phrase the governor used a year ago – to come up with a budget that does not make life in New Jersey more unaffordable for the taxpayers, the response of the people has been ‘so be it.’”

DeCroce said he wants to believe that Corzine is sincere in cutting state spending and that legislative Democrats don’t block this long overdue move in the right direction by undoing the more positive aspects of what the governor will propose tomorrow. However, there is good reason for taxpayers to be suspicious and maintain their vigilance.

“Every year, for six straight years, governors have told us we have a fiscal crisis but their budget proposal would solve it,” DeCroce noted. “All of them were Democrats.  All of them promised to cut spending. All of them promised to stop using the state credit card. All of them promised fiscal responsibility. And in the end, all of them made the problem worse. Only time will tell whether taxpayers are in store for another repeat performance.”

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