Budget Chair Says Economic Forecasts Promising, Budget is One of Necessity
TRENTON – Senator Wayne R. Bryant, D-Camden and Gloucester, the Chair of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, issued the following statement regarding the panel’s hearing today on the State’s economic outlook and the FY2007 Budget:
“What we heard today was some good news, and some bad news.
“The good news is that all signs point to a continued strong economy in the State of New Jersey, with a diversified job base continuing to perform well. Our State has long benefited from the research and development going on within our borders, and we remain one of the biggest producers of the world’s pharmaceuticals.
“But we have to realize that the austere budget proposed by Governor Corzine earlier this year is a budget of necessity, and while the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee will do everything in our power to shield working families and the most vulnerable from severe cuts in aid, this is going to be a painful fiscal year.
“Unfortunately, this is the price we have to pay to wean the State off one-shot revenues and finally achieve a sense of fiscal sanity. For too long, we’ve lived in a cycle of deficits, and what we are now seeing is the tough budgeting necessary to put us back on the right track. While the FY 2007 Budget will hurt, we can take solace in knowing that the tough decisions made today will benefit our children and restore stability to the State’s fiscal condition.”