The news on the state’s budget front was not good today, unless you are the governor and you view the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Services as a political tool of the Democrats.
The state’s revenues look to be about $200 million below the Christie administration’s estimates, creating a shortfall for the just-ended budget year and calling into doubt Christie’s 2012-2013 revenue estimates.
I’ve written this before, but responsible budgeting is based on the notion of conservative estimates: low-ball the revenues and over-estimate the expenses, which then limits the exposure in case something unexpected happens. Municipal governments are required to operate this way — they cannot anticipate more revenue for the upcoming year than they raised in the year about to end without prior approval. The state, however, does not, which makes the requirement that it balance its budget a sham.
It would be easy to blame Christie for this — it is his budget that we are talking about, along with his potential vice presidential ambitions or gubernatorial re-election campaign. Christie promised to end these shenanigans, but he is not the only one responsible. The selective use of revenue estimates is a time-honored Trenton tradition, as is the pretense that allows Trenton politicians to claim they are being responsible when they cut things like the Earned Income Tax Credit or delay pension payments.
New Jerseyans deserve an honest debate — and not the kind of silly name calling (Corzine Democrats, Bush/Rove budgeting) that passes for discussion these days.
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- Certainties and Uncertainties a chapbook by Hank Kalet, will be published in November by Finishing Line Press. It can be ordered here.
- Suburban Pastoral, a chapbook by Hank Kalet, available here.
Hank Kalet 