Post by admin on May 25, 2007 15:50:39 GMT -5
BECK OPPOSES PROPOSED TOLL INCREASE
Assemblywoman criticizes Trenton Democrats for piling on even more debt onto an already cash strapped state
Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth, Mercer) today denounced the plan by Governor Corzine and the Democrat legislative leadership to raise tolls in preparation for their ill-advised “asset monetization” plan.
“It never stops”, said Beck. “Is there a tax, a fee, a charge, a surcharge, a penalty or now a toll, that hasn’t been raised in the last 5 years? The state just keeps spending and spending and asking already overburdened taxpayers to foot the bill. There is never a moment’s thought about finding the money in our bloated state budget.”
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: asset monetization is just a fancy Wall Street term for debt”, said Beck. “Where I come from, if you get a lump some of money up front in return for payments in the future, that’s borrowing. And I think we’ve done enough of that over the last few years that our grandchildren will be paying it off when we’re long gone.”
Beck pointed out that the total state debt has gone from $16.2 billion to $37.5 billion since 2001, and the state budget from $22 billion to over $33 billion since 2002, yet many state programs are underfunded.
“We’ve borrowed almost $21 billion dollars and raised the budget by over $11 billion over the last 6 years and what do we have to show for it?”, asked Beck. “The Schools Construction Corporation, the Transportation Trust Fund, the Garden State Preservation Trust- just to name a few- have all been on the brink of insolvency. We still can’t fund our schools properly. Billions have been wasted under Democrat control of the Statehouse and the Legislature. Now they want to raise $15 billion more and pay for it by raising tolls on the hard working people of New Jersey. Why should New Jersey drivers have to pay for their waste and mismanagement?”
Beck concluded by saying, “Governor Corzine promised in his State of the State speech that ‘property tax reform would not be built on a one time election year miracle’. Yet because the legislature is totally unwilling to confront the hard decisions which must be made regarding our state spending, and because property tax reform cannot be funded past this year without an asset monetization miracle, this ill advised borrowing scheme is actually under consideration. I believe it is a bad idea for New Jersey, but a good indication of why we need a change in Trenton.”
####
Tom Fitzsimmons
Legislative District Coordinator
District 12
Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck
Assemblywoman criticizes Trenton Democrats for piling on even more debt onto an already cash strapped state
Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck (R-Monmouth, Mercer) today denounced the plan by Governor Corzine and the Democrat legislative leadership to raise tolls in preparation for their ill-advised “asset monetization” plan.
“It never stops”, said Beck. “Is there a tax, a fee, a charge, a surcharge, a penalty or now a toll, that hasn’t been raised in the last 5 years? The state just keeps spending and spending and asking already overburdened taxpayers to foot the bill. There is never a moment’s thought about finding the money in our bloated state budget.”
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: asset monetization is just a fancy Wall Street term for debt”, said Beck. “Where I come from, if you get a lump some of money up front in return for payments in the future, that’s borrowing. And I think we’ve done enough of that over the last few years that our grandchildren will be paying it off when we’re long gone.”
Beck pointed out that the total state debt has gone from $16.2 billion to $37.5 billion since 2001, and the state budget from $22 billion to over $33 billion since 2002, yet many state programs are underfunded.
“We’ve borrowed almost $21 billion dollars and raised the budget by over $11 billion over the last 6 years and what do we have to show for it?”, asked Beck. “The Schools Construction Corporation, the Transportation Trust Fund, the Garden State Preservation Trust- just to name a few- have all been on the brink of insolvency. We still can’t fund our schools properly. Billions have been wasted under Democrat control of the Statehouse and the Legislature. Now they want to raise $15 billion more and pay for it by raising tolls on the hard working people of New Jersey. Why should New Jersey drivers have to pay for their waste and mismanagement?”
Beck concluded by saying, “Governor Corzine promised in his State of the State speech that ‘property tax reform would not be built on a one time election year miracle’. Yet because the legislature is totally unwilling to confront the hard decisions which must be made regarding our state spending, and because property tax reform cannot be funded past this year without an asset monetization miracle, this ill advised borrowing scheme is actually under consideration. I believe it is a bad idea for New Jersey, but a good indication of why we need a change in Trenton.”
####
Tom Fitzsimmons
Legislative District Coordinator
District 12
Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck