Christie Presents New & Improved Budget

Before a joint session of the New Jersey Legislature yesterday afternoon, Governor Chris Christie presented his proposed budget for the state’s new fiscal year ending June 30, 2013.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie presents his
administration's new budget, as Assembly Speaker, Sheila
Oliver and Senate President, Stephen Sweeney look on.
(TV Screenshot/Dick Bergeron)

The tally comes in at a hefty $32.1 billion – yet, not only does it not call for any tax increases, but it proposes an across-the-board income tax cut of 10% for all Garden State taxpayers, phased in over three years.

Additionally, the spending plan proposes a $213 million hike in school aid.  This increases the total amount of such assistance by $1 billion since Christie took office two years ago, bringing total school aid in the proposed budget to a record $8.8 billion. 

Claiming that one out of every three dollars in the budget is now being invested in education, Christie said, “We are putting our money where our mouth is.” 

He also emphasized, “We need to give choice and hope to those students and parents now trapped in failing school districts by passing the Opportunity Scholarship Act.”



“It’s not enough and it’s not appropriate,” Christie said, “to simply tell our most challenged urban families, trapped in over 200 failing schools, that ‘life’s not fair.’”

(The underlined three-word quote in the previous paragraph [emphasis is mine] is attributed to a high-ranking executive of the New Jersey Education Association, as he commented upon the needs of under-served students in New Jersey’s inner-city school systems.)

Reversing his predecessors’ habits of borrowing from the state pension plan, the Governor is proposing a contribution of $1.1 billion into the state pension fund, an increase of $587 million over last year, and one which represents 3.4% of the $32.1 billion proposed budget.

There is much more, but I have highlighted only a few of the big items in the interest of brevity.

In the midst of what is one of the most fragile economic recoveries of our times, the Governor’s proposed budget is a responsible one. 

It has some deficiencies, but the man can’t do it all by himself – certainly, it is geometrically more responsible than the wasteful spending incurred by his predecessors of the last several decades.  The New Jersey Legislature would do well to consider it carefully.

Thanks for reading.  Today is hump day!