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Senator Higdon’s Report from Frankfort |
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From the desk of Senator Jimmy Higdon
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Wednesday, 09 June 2010 21:15 |
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FRANKFORT – The 2010 Special Session closed with the passage of a two-year budget, a road plan, and an unemployment insurance bill. After much public pressure, the House Majority agreed to a responsible budget without job-killing taxes and significantly decreased state debt. It is fiscally-conservative budget that reflects the common-sense values of Kentucky families who are struggling in this economy. State government is not, and should not be, immune from the same challenges. In this vein, the General Assembly also put a plan in place to pay back the federal government the money we had borrowed for our depleted unemployment insurance fund. The fund will continue to be solvent and provide a safety net for those still searching for a job. It was a necessary step to avoid greater costs threatened by the federal government.
As many of you are aware, the 2010 General Assembly Session closed without a budget because the House Majority Leadership would not put a budget without projects up to a vote prompting the Governor to call the Legislature back into session this week. He offered to the House a budget proposal that closely mirrored the budget the Senate passed before we adjourned. The budget that was finally passed cut most state government spending by 3.5% in 2010-11 and another 1% in 2011-12. Education and Medicaid were spared. Much like the Senate budget, this budget keeps 177 instructional school days and it requires the Governor to cut $300 million in state contracts and other costs. Lastly, there is a process to replace our worst-shape schools.
It has been a difficult process but I am confident this budget will help prepare Kentucky for a better day. It is a bare-bones budget package that will fund most state government operations in Kentucky through 2012 with less than was budgeted in 2009. It does not increase taxes on those that employ Kentuckians and stops our spiral of unsustainable debt. Government’s books cannot be balanced by unbalancing the books of its citizens.
As always, please feel free to call me at home with any questions or comments at 270-692-6945 or toll-free at 1-800-372-7181 or TTY 1-800-896-0305. You can also find us on the World Wide Web at www.lrc.state.ky.us.,
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Last Updated on Wednesday, 09 June 2010 21:19 |
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Higdon Appointed to Agritourism Advisory Council |
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Tuesday, 27 April 2010 16:57 |
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FRANKFORT – Senate President David L. Williams recently appointed State Senator Jimmy Higdon (R-Lebanon) to the Agritourism Advisory Council. As one of Kentucky’s fastest growing tourism opportunities, the state’s dynamic agritourism industry provides activities and 'on-farm' experiences for visitors throughout the year.
Higdon stated, “I am grateful for this additional opportunity to highlight one of Kentucky’s greatest legacies – our farm communities. The proposed Agricultural Heritage Center is a great example of the type of excitement that these tourism opportunities can bring to an area.”
The purpose of the Agritourism Advisory Council is to promote agritourism in Kentucky to potential visitors, both national and international; and assist in sustaining the viability and growth of the agritourism industry in Kentucky. One of its recent accomplishments is working with the Transportation Cabinet to bring better road signage to highlight various agritourism sites. |
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 27 April 2010 16:59 |
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Frankfort Report- April 5th |
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From the desk of Senator Jimmy Higdon
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Monday, 05 April 2010 11:36 |
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FRANKFORT – As many of you have heard or read, issues around the state’s budget have not yet been resolved. The primary problem is that the Senate and the House Republicans are unwilling to issue $1.2 billion in additional debt and raise an additional $280 million in taxes. We are simply not in a position to increase our debt load.
Unfortunately, deep philosophical differences remain between the House Democratic majority and the Senate. The House believes that you can spend, borrow, or gamble your way into prosperity while the Senate believes that in these times, people expect shared sacrifice.
The Senate, in an overwhelming bipartisan vote, passed a budget proposal that was 39% less structural imbalance than the House’s and for the first time, dropped our debt ratio below 7%. We added the two school days the House had eliminated – which would have cost teachers about $500. In an effort to reach out to the House, the Senate proposed to spend $25 million more in
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Frankfort Report- April 16th, 2010 |
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From the desk of Senator Jimmy Higdon
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Friday, 16 April 2010 12:56 |
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FRANKFORT – The General Assembly adjourned the 2010 General Assembly Session without finalizing a budget. It is a matter that has caused much frustration and even anger. People should be mad. The fact of the matter is that the Senate would not agree to a fiscally unsound budget proposed by the House that raised over $280 million in taxes and bonded over $1 billion in projects that we cannot afford.
The Senate negotiated for several weeks. We offered to meet the House on their education and Medicaid services spending. We even thought we had an agreement on two occasions. Two weeks ago, the Senate voted almost unanimously to pass a two-year budget that was agreed to by all the Democratic and Republican Senate budget conferees and Republican Representative budget conferees. This budget made fair and reasonable recessionary adjustments to the state budget, restored SEEK and Medicaid funding, and laid out a process to replace our worst-shape schools without raising taxes. It helped Kentucky live within our means and prepared us for a better day. Unfortunately, Majority House Leadership would not allow a vote on a two-year budget without projects.
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