No Compromises on Cuts

Yesterday, the Florida Senate voted 36-0 to approve a $68.6 billion spending plan, and now must begin negotiations with the Florida House, where leaders insist on spending $1 billion less. While the House has decided to avoid budget cuts in certain areas by sweeping $788 million from trust funds, which includes $466 million from the State Transportation Trust Fund, the negotiations between both chambers’ budgets will continue throughout the month of April.

According to today’s front-page article in the Tallahassee Democrat, Democratic critics are labeling this sweep the "Job Killing Act of 2010," claiming it would cost 8,000 construction jobs. While current reductions in FDOT work, without the Trust Fund cuts, have already resulted in the elimination of 40,000 jobs in this industry, we believe if you add these cuts into account, that’s another 50,000 jobs that will be abolished. The impact of unemployed Floridians by the hundreds of thousands is an economic strain we all know we cannot repay. We cannot even afford a compromise in the middle – these trust fund raids simply cannot be allowed.

We are working feverishly and urging our elected officials to create solutions that allow us to responsibly pay what we are asking the state to provide. Florida needs to consider increasing user fees in all areas – not just transportation. User fees, like tag and title fees which were increased last year, are designed to be spent specifically for the purposes collected. Similar increases might actually allow for amplified growth and state spending. Any cuts to the State Transportation Trust Fund will not only destroy an economic driving industry, it will ruin our state. At some point, we have to pay. Eventually, even the government’s checks will bounce.