Gov. Rick Scott on Monday afternoon will unveil a proposed state budget that includes deep spending cuts of an estimated $5 billion and will ask lawmakers to approved a dramatic reduction in property taxes.
He will announce his budget - his first as governor - before a crowd of tea party activists in this small central Florida town about 190 miles from Tallahassee at a rally, beginning at 1 p.m. He will then return to Tallahassee to brief reporters on his budget plan at about 4 p.m..
The budget blueprint, which must be approved by the Legislature, includes promises Scott made on the gubernatorial campaign last fall when he pledged to revolutionize government by running it like an efficient business. He said the leaner budget would set the foundation to create jobs throughout recession-weary Florida.
Scott, a former hospital chain executive, wants legislators to cut more than $1 billion in school property taxes and then transfer money from other sections of the budget. To offset the lost revenue, state workers would contribute to their pensions - for the first time - by contributing five percent of their salaries.
He also wants to trim about $700 million in corporate income taxes in Florida, which already has one of the nation’s lowest rates.
Another big target for savings: the growing health insurance program for the poor and financially challenged, Medicaid.
More than half of Medicaid’s $20.3 billion tab is picked up by the federal government, which can halt some wholesale changes. Scott and the Legislature can cut up to half of the program’s so-called optional services, many of which are popular and are designed to save money, however. Regardless, the state would lose hundreds of millions in federal matching money.
Slashing billions from schools and Medicare in order to give tax breaks to the wealthy and businesses, and making state and local employees pay the difference out of their own pockets. What a nice guy. Welcome to the realm of the "laboratory of democracy" there, Florida. Enjoy your stay.
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GOP Gov. Rick Scott is going the full Galt with his budget proposal, balancing Florida's budget solely on the backs of state employees and the poor in order to approve billions in property tax cuts for the wealthy and corporate tax cuts for businesses.
Except that is not what Scott is doing. Take a drink!!!
Slashing billions from schools and Medicare in order to give tax breaks to the wealthy and businesses,...
Scott wants to reduce property tax rates. Not property tax rates for the wealthy, but property tax rates for everyone. Take another drink!!!
Scott wants to reduce corporate tax rates, which helps all workers in a corporation, not just the wealthy. Another drink.
...and making state and local employees pay the difference out of their own pockets.
Good. About time they contribute to their own retirement instead of expecting the rest of the taxpayers do so.
FTA:
Scott and the Legislature can cut up to half of the program’s so-called optional services, many of which are popular and are designed to save money, however. Regardless, the state would lose hundreds of millions in federal matching money.
Naturally, the Miami Herald can't name those services, so we don't know if they really are popular or not. Drink up!!!
That's four drinks in five minutes. I'm gonna bill Zandar for the cab ride home.
We've proven time and time again that Zandar is a pathological liar. he can't help himself.
When Florida's economy is in much better shape four years from now thanks to these cuts and Scott is re-elected overwhelmingly, I wonder if Zandar will admit he was wrong?
Oh wait, this blog will be long gone by then.
Steve happens to have several good points here - everyone benefits from lower property taxes, even the poor. I'm not sure what sort of savings you get from lowered taxes on a mobile home or a cheap rental, or even a cardboard box. But I'm sure it's substantial enough to make up for the cuts to the local schools. And isn't it unfair to expect the wealthy to pay into a system they've systematically defunded to the point of near collapse when they send their kids to private prep school.
And I'm sure that lowering Florida's tax rate, which is already one of the lowest in the nation to start, will eventually benefit the workers. I mean it hasn't YET, with Florida workers earning 39th out of 50 states. But I'm sure it's a matter of time - many corporations in Florida didn't even pay that tax to start with, so it's BOUND to pay off for that janitor sooner or later.
But, in all seriousness; if Scott gets his way, then Florida will lose revenue and increase it's deficit. He won't care, because he and his won't be affected, while all those low income service workers that support the sagging low cost tourism industry and other services just run faster to stay in place.
And if Florida's economy tanks in four years due to these cuts, they will blame something else, as the GOP always does, and insist it really wasn't their fault... but you know what would help? More tax cuts.
I am still stuck with the image of the mass of wealthy families congregating in the next decade into a vast and impenetrable bunker hidden from all eyes and just slamming the door shut on the mess they made of the world while it burns, laughing.
The bottom line is Scott is cutting education and other services and lowering corporate taxes. That was Zandar's fundamental point and has not been disputed by the comments posted.
The bottom line is Scott is cutting education and other services and lowering corporate taxes. That was Zandar's fundamental point...
No it wasn't. Zandar's fundamental point was to bash Scott based on Zandar's own hateful philosophy.
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