Beech Tree News Network

House Budget Loaded With Debt, Raises Taxes to Cover Costs- The top duty of the Kentucky House of Representatives, pass a two-year budget for Kentucky, finally came to fruition this week, some eight weeks after the Governor first proposed a budget plan.
 
I, like many of my colleagues, take seriously the responsibility to pass a fiscally sound budget for the citizens of Kentucky.  While the vote to pass the budget in the House was 53 yeas and 46 nays, it was not without much debate.

On Wednesday we took up House Bill 445, which is the revenue portion of the budget or, more commonly, the proposal on how we plan to pay for the list of items in the budget.  Those who crafted the bill placed a requirement to raise Kentucky’s gas tax 1.5 cents per gallon as soon as April 1 and also to increase the ‘floor,’ or the minimum wholesale price so the gas tax will keep going up in the future.  I voted against this measure, as I do not believe increasing the gas tax is fiscally sound policy and will hurt Kentuckians during tough economic times.

 The Kentucky General Assembly made a pledge to you in 2008 when they approved a change that stated if the wholesale price went down, the gas tax would go down.  That happened for the first time last December, and now some want to go back and raise it again.  This is wrong not only because we are breaking our promise, but it once again places an undue cost on those Kentuckians struggling to make ends meet.

On Thursday we took up the executive branch budget proposal, House Bill 235.  The budget plan proposed by the House Democrat leadership places an additional $2 billion dollars in new debt, meaning your children and grandchildren will be paying off the interest for decades to come unless the Senate makes changes to the bill.

The proposed budget by House Democrat leadership also increases our debt capacity, which means the amount of debt compared to our amount of revenue, to more than seven percent.  That would make it one of the highest debt levels in the history of our Commonwealth.  This debt level increase is due to the increase of taxes and fees all to spend more money.  This ‘tax and spend’ mentality that engulfs Washington does not need to seep down to Frankfort.

For the remaining weeks of this legislative session, I will work with my colleagues in the Senate on a budget plan that is more balanced and does not place an undue burden on hard working Kentuckians.  We are still hopeful a budget agreement can be reached before the end of the session, but the clock is ticking.

I welcome your comments and concerns on any issues impacting our Commonwealth during the 2014 Regular Session.  I can be reached through the toll-free message line in Frankfort at 1-800-372-7181, or you can contact me via e-mail at [email protected]. You can keep track of committee meetings and potential legislation through the Kentucky Legislature Home Page at www.lrc.ky.gov, and I also encourage you to follow the House Republican Caucus on Facebook and Twitter.