Untitled Document

2009 State of the State/Budget Message

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But there is time, and unfortunately there is the need for public schools to be included in the difficult realities of our economy as we plan for Fiscal 2010.

The budget recommendation you received today includes a General Fund allocation for public schools that is about 5-and-one-third percent less than this year’s appropriation.

However, the $1 billion, 425 million I’m proposing for K-through-12 education next year still represents almost half our total General Fund budget.

And the fact is that my proposed public schools budget is reduced FAR less than I’m recommending for other state agencies.

For example, my General Fund budget proposal for Health and Welfare is down 71⁄2 percent. Higher education is down almost 10 percent; the departments of Correction and Water Resources each are down almost 12 percent. The Department of Agriculture recommendation is down more than 31 percent, Commerce more than 51 percent, and Parks and Recreation almost 56 percent.

The K-12 budget I’m proposing also does not dip any further into the public school rainy day funds.
The unfortunate reality is we just don’t know how long or how bad this economic downturn is going to be. It is by far the wiser and more prudent course to be cautious and conservative in how we use reserve accounts. Indeed, my overall budget recommendation calls for using no more than 35 percent of the total reserves in our rainy day funds to see us through Fiscal 2009 and throughout Fiscal 2010.
I am confident that many of you have ideas for improving on my budget recommendation. That’s as it should be. Idaho is depending on each of us to work together for the good of all our citizens.

We are fortunate to have the strong, statewide perspective of Chairmen Bell, Cameron, Hill and Lake guiding our efforts. But my job is to lead the way by recommending what the people, the laws of our great state and the Constitution on which they are based require of our government – of the people’s servants.

At the same time, my budget recommendation lays the foundation for advancing Project 60 – which is crucial in positioning Idaho for economic recovery and future prosperity.

My plan for growing Idaho’s economy and creating good jobs for years to come already is under way – and showing results. Commerce Director Don Dietrich is leading this program, working in tandem with agencies throughout state government and with the private sector.

One of its goals is nurturing a new generation of entrepreneurial giants.

We want to encourage and create a climate that enables visionaries like the Simplots, Albertsons and Morrisons of yesterday – and like the Parkinsons, Hagadones, Vandersloots and Sayers of our own generation – to create more jobs and brighter futures for Idaho families and communities.

Project 60 involves almost every element of state policy – from education and workforce development to quality of life and recruiting foreign investment and trade. It is designed to strengthen both our rural and urban communities, to leverage our strengths here at home while taking advantage of the dollar’s weakness abroad.

But Project 60’s success – and in large measure Idaho’s success – depends on our willingness to address the infrastructure challenges we face – not only roads and bridges but energy transmission, water supply, information networks and educational resources.

Elements of Project 60 are being applied to our work with such companies as AREVA, ALK Abello Source Materials, Hoku, DOT Foods and many others.

The initiative is driving our retooled Innovation Council, which is going to take the lead in technology transfer and commercialization.

The Innovation Council’s marching orders are to provide a practical and business-oriented approach to turning ideas into jobs and economic activity. That means working more closely with the Idaho National Laboratory as it enters its seventh successful decade in Idaho. It means coordinating the efforts of our colleges and universities and other research partners – public and private – to quickly and efficiently determine what works and how it can be applied in the marketplace.

Folks, we are leaving no stone unturned in our search for ways to add value to Idaho and our economy.

For instance, we were ready when Congress approved the Neighborhood Stabilization Program late last summer in response to the foreclosure crisis. Now we are only awaiting federal approval of our plan for making the best use of $19.6 million in assistance to Idaho families.

The plan put together skillfully by Gerald Hunter and his committee of stakeholders focuses on areas of Idaho where foreclosures hit communities hardest last year, and where these critical housing resources are needed most. We hope to see that federal financial help arriving within a few months.
Another element of our efforts is the work of the Pacific Northwest Economic Region – otherwise known as PNWER.

PNWER is an important forum for public-private partnership in economic development and global competitiveness. Its reach extends throughout the Northwest United States and western Canada. And I’m pleased to announce today that Idaho will be hosting PNWER’s 19th Annual Summit this coming July 12th through the 16th, here in Boise.

In fact PNWER has a delegation with us here today.

Idaho truly is part of a national and a global economy.

There’s no getting around the fact that our fortune and our future is tied to that of our nation and the world. But once again: It’s up to each of us to fully play a role in our economic recovery. It’s up to each of us to ensure people have the tools they need to live up to their individual potential.

If Idaho is going to compete effectively in the marketplace of goods and ideas, it is critical that we as a state provide the infrastructure for success. That means clean air and water. It means education, energy and information. And it means safe, efficient corridors of commerce.

It means transportation.
No other issue has dominated public discourse or my own efforts more over the past year than how to address the enormous and growing backlog of maintenance and construction needs on our system of highways and bridges.

I have appreciated working on this issue with many of you, with our Transportation Board and with local leaders and citizens in every corner of our state. The result of those labors is a plan that I believe is reasonable, achievable, and absolutely essential to our economic well-being and Idaho’s prospects for the future.

Just as importantly, it reflects what I heard during months of listening to the people we serve statewide, conferring with experts here and in other states, and challenging everyone involved to think creatively.

And now I’m challenging you to join me in making the tough choices that will be necessary to achieve our transportation goals.

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