March 08, 2010
This nation and this state are experiencing economic times unlike anything
we’ve seen in our lifetimes. In other words, we are hurting, our families
are hurting. Increased job losses, declining home values, foreclosures,
rising cost of energy and food, and unrelenting health care costs are
beating us down yet Washington continues to squabble and is disconnected
from the reality of hardworking people. They need to take a lesson from
Alabama and here is what they would learn.
First, you make tough budget decisions and don’t raise
taxes. In fact, I was part of the team that passed last year’s $50 million
income tax cut, exempting federal stimulus rebate checks from state
taxation. That contributes to our state having the lowest tax burden in
America.
We also invest our tax dollars wisely. Our highway jobs bill is the perfect
example. There are four options to pay for this new construction. One, we
could stand by and do nothing, let our road and bridges continue to
deteriorate and let these jobs go elsewhere. Two, we could raise the gas
tax. Third, we could borrow $1 billion, putting this state and our children
into more debt. All of these options, I say absolutely not to. That leaves
option four which is to use the interest from the Alabama Trust Fund, our
rainy day fund and invest $1 billion over 10 years to help every county in
Alabama. That’s the most conservative, fiscally prudent choice and this
would create 30,000 new jobs.
Being a fiscal conservative has helped Alabama in other ways as well. During
good years, we had the foresight to save for a rainy day, and our savings
accounts’ reserves, championed by the Alabama Legislature, have spared our
schools and seniors from what could have been a catastrophic financial
scenario during the last two years. A conservative approach to budget
forecasts, saving money for tough economic times, stretching every dollar
and investing in our many needs when resources are available, are the best
approaches to funding state budgets. State government must do what families
do when paying bills. We must prioritize spending and cut waste.
There is no question our budgets are facing lean times. Our state education
budget is down $1.5 billion from funding it enjoyed just a couple of years
ago. The state’s general fund budget is in even worse shape. By setting
priorities, we have been able to increase funding to the Medicaid Agency and
support programs that many of our seniors depend upon. We also expanded the
Children’s Health Insurance Program, our first-in-the-nation program that
provides healthcare to children of working families and now 20,000 more kids
are covered. We doubled the funding for prekindergarten. By making this
program a priority, 1,000 additional children can not participate in the
program. This gives them a head start in school.
I also want to thank the Northwest Alabama RC & D for awarding me their
Franklin County 2010 You Make A Difference Award. I am honored by their
selection of me and promise to continue to work hard for the people of my
senate district.
I had the pleasure of presenting RC & D grants this past week, including one
to the Franklin County Imagination Library which is a program that provides
books for preschool age children, one to the Tharptown High School for
textbooks, one for the Spirit of Hodges Festival, one to the Russellville
Head Start program for equipment upgrades, one to Riverton Rose Trail for
the construction of a park pavilion, one for the Spruce Pine Community
Center, one for the Winston County Assign-A-Highway program designed to use
probationers for roadside litter removal in Winston County and one for the
Andrea Gonzalez Education Memorial used to educate the community about
domestic violence and a tribute to Andrea Gonzalez.
I am pleased to see these much needed grants come to our area to assist with
these important community and educational projects.
Should you need to reach me for any reason please do so at the following
addresses.
Roger H. Bedford, Jr.
Alabama State House
Suite 730
Montgomery, AL 36130
Phone:334-242-7862
Fax:334-353-4304
Roger H. Bedford, Jr.
P.O. Box 370
Russellville, AL 35653
Phone: 256-332-2880
Fax:256-332-7821
Email: Senbedford@aol.com