Governors to Washington: Don't balance the budget at expense of states

[Eugene]

Source: CBS News

By JAKE MILLER / CBS NEWS/ February 23, 2013, 1:20 PM

Governors to Washington: Don't balance the budget at expense of states

The National Governors Association, a bipartisan collection of state executives meeting this weekend in Washington for their annual winter conference, delivered a timely message to lawmakers working on a deficit reduction package: balance the budget, by all means - but not at our expense.

"Deficit reduction should not shift costs from the federal government to the states," said NGA chairman Gov. Jack Markell, D-Del. "We know the cuts are coming, but we don't want to suffer disproportionately, and we want to have some input in terms of what that looks like."

"We understand that the federal government needs to make cuts," said NGA vice-chair Gov. Mary Fallin, R-Okla. "We're all concerned about our federal debt. We're just saying, as you identify federal cuts and savings, allow the states to realize those savings too."

Gov. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., explained that debate is not about the imperative of deficit reduction, but about what form it takes: "I haven't heard a single governor not recognize that the deficit and the level of indebtedness is a serious risk," he said, adding that states are willing to "share the pain" caused by cutbacks.

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Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-250_162-57570900/governors-to-washington-dont-balance-the-budget-at-expense-of-states/

[ProgressiveProfessor]

1. That is pretty much how Jerry Brown (who claims a balanced budget) did it in CA. The localities are

really scrambling as a result

[John2]

2. Shouldn't they

be talking to the Republicans? The Democrats don't want these cuts. If this Sequestrian goes through, it want only hurt people the Republicans are trying to hurt, but it will hurt their constituents in Red States the most. States with larger populations have a larger tax base than most red states and better pay wages. Those Red States have a lotta military bases. They get a lotta money from the Military Industrial Complex. They employ a lotta civilians too. Those constituents don't feel the pain now but many of them will be joining the unemployment ranks soon if the Republicans don't come to terms. And guess what the Governor of North Carolina just did with unemployment compensation starting July. I see a huge trainwreck coming in North Carolina for Republicans.