From Delegate Kathy Szeliga:
WE ARE THE 96%!
Welcome to another edition of the Szeliga update! This week’s focus is on the GOP members of the House Appropriations Committee and our alternative budget plan to Governor O’Malley’s proposed budget.
Check out our video with highlights from the GOP House Appropriations committee press conference.
Please read this article by Len Lazarick at Maryland Reporter covering the GOP members of the House Appropriations Committee.
House Republicans Call for 2% Cut in Budget Proposal, Paychecks Were Cut 2% on January 1 – The State Can Cut 2% Too!
Annapolis – Thursday, Delegate Kathy Szeliga, along with other Republican members of the House Appropriations Committee presented an alternative budget plan calling for a 2% cut in the governor’s budget proposal which equates to zero growth in the upcoming fiscal year. Republican committee members urged Governor O’Malley to tread cautiously given the current financial insecurity brought on by the federal sequester and still recovering local economy.
With the expiration of the payroll tax holiday, all working people in Maryland saw a 2% cut in their take home pay on January 1. Everyone is living on 2% less today and it’s reasonable and responsible to ask the government to do the same. After years of $1 billion plus increases in state spending, finding 2% should not be hard.
According to a recent Gonzales poll, 96% of Marylanders feel that they pay enough in taxes and 64% are against an annual $1 billion spending increase. The majority of Marylanders are clearly fed up with the spending spree going on in Annapolis.
The Republican plan is a fiscally responsible alternative to another bloated spending plan presented by the Governor. The citizens of Maryland are clearly tired of the same old strategy of raising taxes to increase spending.
Delegate Susan Aumann also called attention to the disparity between personal income growth and the rate of state government spending increases, “Maryland’s budget has increased over one billion dollars each year since 2008. State spending has outpaced personal income growth and Maryland’s government continues to grow while its taxpayers are losing ground.”
As a way to reduce spending, Republicans encouraged the Governor to reevaluate new and redundant programs. Republicans also expressed concerns about the growing state debt.
Over the course of his term, the Governor has maxed out the State credit card. The state’s mortgage (debt service) is increasing year by year and is paid by the state’s property tax. In order to keep up with payments, property taxes will need to rise. Our children and grandchildren will be footing the bill for today’s spending.
Conservatives also commented on the added burden the Governor’s transportation plan would put on taxpayers. We agree that improving our transportation infrastructure needs to be a priority. However, the Governor’s plan does not distribute the funding burden equally between motorists and mass-transit users. The Governor’s gas tax plan is also overly burdensome on the working poor and Maryland’s small businesses.
Conservatives continue to offer solutions and ideas in Annapolis. It’s a reasonable plan that helps Maryland taxpayers and is thoughtfully looking at the future impact that sequestration will certainly have on the State of Maryland.
Republican Appropriation Committee members that contributed to this press release are: Delegates Susan Aumann, Gail Bates, Wendell Beitzel, Addie Eckardt, Tony McConkey, and Nancy Stocksdale
Please do not hesitate to call or email me with any questions or if I can be of assistance to you and your family.
Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. Please keep them coming my way.
Kathy
Delegate Kathy Szeliga
Kathy, take the lead. Give back 2% of your pay. And talk Ed Harris into giving back his too. In fact, since we have a sequester that will result in the loss of 42 hours per pay period; I think Mr Harris should also be furloughed a similar amount.
Excuse me, 22 hours.
Because David A. Porter is a progressive he can’t bring himself to accept the failings of progressivism.
Is that David Porter? I wondered where he went.
Because, do you mean Andy Harris? If you are going to be political, get your facts correct.
Still no anger at your president who is doing this to you intentionally?
Mr. Obama cannot make a mistake because he has a (D) after his name. Dem/Libs don’t make mistakes. They don’t lie. They never even stretch the truth. They are interested only in the welfare of the economically deprived and never their own. They never take advantage of any tax deduction because they are always interested in paying the maximum amount allowed by law. They are always ready to protect children and teachers and firefighters and policemen at their own personal expense. They never harm the environment in anyway. Even when on those very rare occasions that they pass gas, they find a way to capture it and recycle it.