TRENTON – Senate President Richard J. Codey, D-Essex, issued the following statement today in response to Governor Jon Corzine’s budget address:
“I want to commend Governor Corzine for his hard work. He dove head first into this fiscal crisis, which is no easy task. He’s worked hard to bring this message to the public and he’s leveled with the people. In the end, regardless of how painful some of our decisions may be, I think the public will appreciate this honesty.
“We’ve certainly got our work cut out for us. Governor Corzine, reiterated what I said last year – the bottom line is that the state is pretty much broke. Cleaning up this fiscal mess requires sacrifices from both sides of the aisle.
“While I don’t necessarily agree with every proposal presented today, I plan to be a productive part of the solution. Along with my colleagues in the Senate, we will go over each and every line item with a fine toothed comb to find the fairest ways to cut spending, before resorting to any painful revenue raisers.
“There are some areas where we need to ask ourselves: Is this cut really worth it? Will the benefit outweigh the consequence? Will those most in need be forced to sacrifice while we see little in return?
“At the same time, there may be areas where we can go deeper, scrub this budget even further, and produce greater spending cuts. In the end, hopefully, what we’ll have is a budget that ends the gimmicks that created this mess and, as Governor Corzine said, reflects our values as a state.”