South Carolina: Averting The 1.6% Cataclysm
With the S.C. Supreme Court ruling in favor of state lawmakers on two “stimulus” lawsuits earlier today, the government spending plan for the coming year is beginning to take definitive shape here in the Palmetto State.
South Carolina’s total budget for the fiscal year beginning on July 1 will now be $20.7 billion – making it the second-largest spending plan in state history.
Thanks to the court’s rulings, the budget will now be $350 million bigger than had the Justices ruled in favor of S.C. Gov. Mark Sanford.
In other words, state agencies won’t be required to implement what amounts to a 1.6% cut.
Wait … 1.6%?
A 1.6% cut is all we were talking about this whole time?
You’ve got to be kidding us.
Yup … although you wouldn’t have known that by listening to state lawmakers who basically bitched and moaned for months on end about the fiscal Armageddon that was sure to come if Sanford didn’t apply for these funds – which again, amounted to less than a tenth of the “stimulus” money South Carolina is receiving.
Of course, to hear House Speaker Bobby Harrell and his buddies tell it, this 1.6% cut would have meant thousands of teachers being fired and thousands of convicted felons being “released onto the streets.”
“Riiiiight …”
Those scare tactics – perpetuated by taxpayer-funded propaganda and ignorant, agenda-driven MSM reporting – were 100% B.S. from the get go.
Also 100% B.S. was the budget that the General Assembly passed, which forced these cuts directly to the front lines of government in spite of Harrell’s contention that legislators “prioritized our state budget and made responsible fiscal decisions that reflect our conservative values.”
“Conservative values?”
Again, “Riiiight …”
The reality is that the disputed “stimulus” money is a drop in an ever-expanding bucket – one that grows government each year no matter what economic realities are being faced by the individual taxpayers, families and small businesses that are forced to pick up the tab.
Anyway, stay tuned tomorrow as we take you inside the growth of South Carolina’s budget over the past decade-and-a-half … you know, since “Republicans” started taking over at the State House …
Comments
By CNSYD on June 4th, 2009 at 7:22 pm
I am not trying to belittle $20.7B but you always have to put it in perspective. You say it is the second largest spending plan. Remember this is 2009 dollars we are talking about. The latest inflation data available is thru year 2008. So $20.7B 2008 dollars equals $15.7B 1998 dollars or $11.5B 1988 dollars. I do not know what the previous budgets were so I can’t make the comparison. Maybe you have that data.
By BIN News Editorial Staff on June 4th, 2009 at 7:59 pm
Sour grapes. Bad manners. Huffing and puffing.
Typical from sic(k) willie.
This was a sanfraud publicity stunt from the start. We all know it.
He got very bad advice. Now he looks like a f@@l.
Almost like when he fired sic(k) willie.
No one on the BIN Staff is in to gambling, but if we were we would wager that the odds of sanfraud getting the republicrat nomination for President just went from 50:1 to 50000000Brazillion:1 which is not a good bet.
And his supporters will also suffer at the polls. Tom, Nikki, Nathan. You have hitched your wagon to a sick mule. That’s worse that a lame duck.
By 4Education on June 4th, 2009 at 8:15 pm
Believe your logic is flawed – we were not looking at 1.6% across the board cuts but cuts that would have been more targeted to services like education, correct?
By Silence Dogood on June 4th, 2009 at 10:13 pm
FITS you belittle what 1.6% of the budget is (I calculated 358 million as 1.73%, but nonetheless), it appears this was an insubstantial amount to you now because Sanford lost the argument. When Sanford was arguing for it, there was really no cry from your blog about how insignifcant the money was then. All I can figure is that sour grape juice does not go down as well as the voka used to?
1.7% of an entire state bugdge – the second largest in total dollars, according to you – is a TREMENDOUSLY big deal, it is almost 2 of every 100 teachers, 2 of every 100 school buses, 2 of every 100 state troopers, 6 feet of every 100 yards of highway repaved, about one third of a digit of Joel Sawyer, and on and on ad nasuem through until the end of the budget.
If you think this is a small deal, you are really out of your mind.
By Liberty for me on June 4th, 2009 at 10:41 pm
The States and the Fed will all come crashing down in the next couple of years…Then we can go back to bare bones government.Those contributing to this perpetual mess should, and will be held accountable.The writing is on the wall…Only the ones looking through socialists lenses cant read it.
By Fashizzle on June 4th, 2009 at 10:45 pm
The logic is sound. This year SC spent $11,480 per child in public schools. With the stimulus funds we will spend $11,200 next year. Without the stimulus we would have spent $10,900 PER CHILD.
SC taxpayers are basically buying a car for every student each year. The only difference is with the stimulus you can throw in floor mats. Education has more than enough cash no matter what.
By Pat Hendrix on June 4th, 2009 at 10:51 pm
You can’ say that 700 million is the end of the world and that it’s only 1.6 percent at same time. Logic is flawed.
By Small Town on June 5th, 2009 at 10:08 am
@ Fashizzle
That figure might work well with larger student bodies, but the low end of the spectrum is hurting. There are some counties that are docking already low pay for teachers and were expected to do the same next year. Granted, teachers don’t exactly teach for the great pay, but giving them even less is a kick in the teeth. If anything maybe this will at least be a morale boost to those teachers.
By Hmmmm.... on June 5th, 2009 at 10:42 am
Fashizzle, this is 1.6% of the entire budget, not just the school, per pupil, spending, but the entire government of South Carolina.