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Patrick seeks job cuts, new school aid

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January 26, 2012|By Noah Bierman and Stephanie Ebbert

Governor Deval Patrick proposed a $32.3 billion annual spending plan yesterday that would eliminate 240,000 free and subsidized lunches for senior citizens, apply the sales tax to candy and soda, and close a prison in Norfolk while boosting spending on education to unprecedented levels.

His budget would also cut 300 state jobs and slash funding for the Registry of Motor Vehicles by $15 million, a move that elicited assurances from the administration yesterday that lines would not grow.

Though Massachusetts has emerged from the depths of the recession on stronger footing than most other states, Patrick and his budget chief warned that the Bay State is far from flush with cash. Despite a proposed 3 percent growth in spending for the budget year that begins July 1, the state will have to reduce many services because health costs and negotiated union salaries continue to grow at a faster clip than taxes are coming in.

“More people are getting back to work, which is great news,’’ Patrick said. “But we still have unprecedented needs to meet on health care, emergency housing, and other essential services because of the numbers of people whose lives have been turned upside down by the global economic collapse.’’

Patrick’s budget chief, Jay Gonzalez, would not quantify the budget gap for the coming year, but offered an even bleaker assessment. He said the state will never again be able to pay for the level of services it provided before the recession, citing long-term debts, including $40 billion in unfunded liability for current and future state and municipal retiree health benefits.

“The impacts of the recession have been unprecedented and significant,’’ he said, adding that he has been inundated with requests in recent weeks from service providers who assumed the state was on sounder financial footing. Many left disappointed.

Still, this year’s spending plan lacked some of the more draconian cuts that have marked budgets in recent years, and Patrick said the state is making concerted effort to invest in targeted areas.

He proposed a $145 million increase in K-12 education aid for local communities, $10 million more for community colleges, and $11 million more for veterans services.

“We chose to grow our way out of this recession, and you can’t grow without a growth strategy,’’ the governor said. “That is why we have invested significantly in education, innovation, and in infrastructure and why we propose to do so again in the coming fiscal year.’’

To balance the budget, Patrick said, he would pull $400 million from the state’s rainy day fund. He included $260 million in new revenue proposals, including taxes on candy and soda, a tax increase on cigarettes, and a new deposit requirement for bottled water.