State Senator Robert Littell

TREASURER ASKED TO EXPLAIN REVENUE DISCREPANCY
ADMINISTRATION ASKED TO FULLY EXPLAIN LACK OF BUDGET CUTS

Senator Robert E. Littell, (R-24), the former Budget and Appropriations Committee Chairman and the longest serving member of the State Legislature has sent a letter to State Treasurer Bradley Abelow asking him to explain the $200 million revenue discrepancy between the Administration’s revenue forecast and the revenue forecast presented by the non-partisan Office of Legislative Services.
TREASURER ASKED TO EXPLAIN REVENUE DISCREPANCY
ADMINISTRATION ASKED TO FULLY EXPLAIN LACK OF BUDGET CUTS

Senator Robert E. Littell, (R-24), the former Budget and Appropriations Committee Chairman and the longest serving member of the State Legislature has sent a letter to State Treasurer Bradley Abelow asking him to explain the $200 million revenue discrepancy between the Administration’s revenue forecast and the revenue forecast presented by the non-partisan Office of Legislative Services.

“The only people who will feel pain under the Governor’s budget are the taxpayers, especially the property taxpayers and the school children of the state of New Jersey,� Littell stated. “The Governor and the Treasurer need to go back to the drawing board and draft a budget that protects school children, property taxpayers and seniors in this state.�

A copy of the letter is attached.

Honorable Barry Abelow
Treasurer, State of New Jersey
State House 08625

Dear Mr. Abelow:

I am writing to express my concern over the direction the State budget is taking. Yesterday the Office of Legislative Services, the non-partisan research arm of the Legislature, stated during their testimony that their revenue estimates were almost $200 million dollars less than the Department of the Treasury’s. The size of this discrepancy and the possibility that the Administration’s estimate is overly optimistic is troubling to me given the State’s current fiscal condition.

It is my belief that the best solution to resolving the budget crisis would be to cut spending instead of raising taxes. Quite frankly, additional tax or fee increases will not be needed to cover this added shortfall. In fact, Governor McGreevey’s Treasurer, John McCormac stated just before he left Treasury that, “New Jersey doesn’t have a revenue problem it has a spending problem.�

Furthermore, when you testify before the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, I would appreciate a full and detailed accounting of how you arrived at your revenue estimates. In addition, I would like an update on the state of the transition policy reports prepared for the Governor and issued January 12, 2006. Specifically, please be prepared to discussion the recommendations made by the Budget and Reengineering Government Policy Group with regards to the recommendation that “steps must be taken immediately to prepare to cut operating costs.�

In addition, what steps were taken during the drafting of the budget to implement this item and what procedures have been adopted to ensure that the Departments in the executive branch are taking steps to cut cost and expenditures. In closing, please be prepared to discuss what spending cuts you considered and then were discarded and why they were discarded.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to a full and frank discussion of the issues surrounding the state budget during the next several weeks.

Yours truly,

Senator Robert E. Littell