The budget that passed on Tuesday evening was a far cry from the taxpayer nightmare that House Democrats unanimously sent to the Senate just a few short weeks ago. The House Democrats aim was to squander all of Indiana’s reserves, with hundreds of millions of dollars in new spending not accounted for by equal spending cuts and the use of one-time federal stimulus dollars for ongoing state expenses. In short, the Democrat budget would have lead to a massive tax hike for Hoosier families. Until late last week, House Speaker Pat Bauer and his leadership team seemed steadfast in their support for their original language, and taxpayers and news outlets alike let their frustrations be known. As an Indianapolis Star editorial implored last week:
