Vermont Gov. James H. Douglas yesterday afternoon delivered his sixth annual budget address revealing a $4.3 billion 2009 budget in state and federal funds. He emphasized having a budget that was “compassionate and balanced” without raising taxes on Vermonters, noting the U.S. may be headed for a “period of economic uncertainty.”
The state’s general fund budget Douglas presented totaled $1.2 billion, which is a 3.2% increase in base appropriations over the current 2008 fiscal year, ending June 30.
There are six major increases in Vermont’s proposed budget totaling $64.4 million that consume virtually all of the available revenue growth, and, in some cases, require the redeployment of resources previously spent elsewhere, Douglas said.
The increases include nearly $35 million for the state’s Catamount Health plan and Medicaid, almost $11 million transferred from the general fund to the education fund, $6.42 million for the homeowner rebates and easement of property taxes, $6.78 million to the Department of Corrections for increasing pressures, and $5.39 million to the Department for Children and Families for basic social services.
“After these necessary expenditures are accounted for, there is almost no room for spending increases — underscoring the challenge ahead,” Douglas said.
Douglas also emphasized investing in Vermont’s roads and bridges, including the use of more than $4.6 million in bonding authority to help address the state’s transportation needs. Vermont has not generally issued bonds for transportation infrastructure in the past.
The transportation portion of the budget also includes $56.6 million specifically for bridges, which is an 8% increase over fiscal 2008. Additionally, Douglas proposed to relieve the burden of the transportation fund for fiscal 2009 by an additional $1.2 million by reducing the amount that the general fund uses from the transportation fund for public safety matters. Since Douglas took office five years ago, Vermont has reduced by $8 million the diversion of transportation funding to non-transportation related programs, and he is committed to further reductions in future budget years, he said.
Douglas also detailed his proposal to lease the state lottery, in which leasing the lottery could potentially provide the state with a one-time $50 million payment, as well as a guaranteed annual payment of $23 million and a percentage of annual profits.
Douglas recommended using the one-time $50 million on one-time expenditures, including the first $25 million for school construction projects. The remaining $25 million would be used to give Vermonters immediate property tax relief.
In an attempt to carry out Douglas’ e-state proposal for universal cellular and wireless coverage in Vermont by the end of 2010, he also proposed that $400,000 go towards the Vermont Telecommunications Authority.
In calendar 2007, Vermont issued about $120 million of debt, according to Thomson Financial.
