A New Day for Indiana Education

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:

“Just as many businesses and families are fighting for financial survival amid the deepest recession in seven decades, state government also must adjust to the fact that revenues have dropped sharply in recent months. Spending as a result must be curtailed, with few exceptions. That may be a hard fact for Bauer to accept, but it's not one he and other leaders should ignore, especially by raiding state savings accounts.  Yet, week after week, month after month, Pat Bauer and his team insist that the state can continue to spend as if the economy were rosy and the budget strong.  We've seen their show before. It's neither funny nor dramatic. It's a tired farce that needs to end.”(Indianapolis Star editorial, 6/25/09)

The final legislation sent to the Governor this week (when Speaker Bauer finally released his caucus to vote as they wanted) maintained healthy state reserves, matched any spending increases with spending cuts, protected against any future tax increases, and spent one-time federal stimulus money responsibly.   Perhaps the largest positive impact was made in the area of education. Indiana’s public schools saw an increase in funding while most other states are slashing education dollars.  Thanks to their hard fought battle for an education tax credit for Hoosier families and an end to the cap on charter schools, Leader Brian Bosma and his House Republicans have also ushered in significant reforms to Indiana’s education system this special session. Changes in this budget are the first step in the important fight to make Indiana a leader in education reform. As we give our parents and students more options, the result will be more competition and better schools, both public and private.

Statehouse Republicans should be proud that they stood firm in the face of Speaker Bauer’s political stall tactics and insisted that Hoosier taxpayers, Hoosier businesses, and Hoosier families deserved a more responsible and common sense approach from their State Legislature.   

For more information about the special session budget, please visit http://www.in.gov/legislative/house_republicans/index.html.   

Stay up-to-date regarding our efforts to make sure that Speaker Bauer and his team are not in power the next time our biennial budget is drafted!  Visit our website at www.housevictory2010.com and contribute today!