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CURRENT PRESS RELEASE |
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5/26/11
State Rep. Dave Agema, R-Grandville, today voted yes on a balanced, structurally sound budget that was approved by the House of Representatives ahead of the May 31 deadline set by Gov. Snyder in his January State of the State address.
"This is the first sound, responsible and timely budget I have seen in the House since I came to Lansing four years ago," Agema said. "We don't borrow into the future on this budget, we don't use one-time stunts to make numbers look good and we did the adult thing and put money into a rainy day fund. I was very happy to vote yes on a budget that accounts for reality and gives schools and local governments plenty of time to balance their own budgets."
House Bill 4325 will now be sent to the governor for his consideration. The bill includes: · A total of $256 million put into a rainy day fund to allow the state to plan for the years ahead with an assurance of further stability; · An additional $30 million on top of the already-agreed amount ($15 million to counties and $15 million to cities, townships and villages) will help struggling local governments meet their financial obligations; and · A budget that moves Michigan closer to regaining AAA bond rating status. Getting back to AAA status means the state will save millions of dollars on interest in borrowing costs.
A total of $1.2 billion in wasteful spending was cut from the final budget. The last time the Michigan Legislature completed a balanced state budget before June 1 was in 1981. Ronald Reagan was president and gas was $1.31 per gallon.
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