Not only is this an amazing feat, he did this without raising taxes for anyone.
Did any of you other guys know this? How come I'm so late to the game to find this out? Are there more states that have a balanced budget? As far as I know, even hard-core states like Texas don't even have a balanced budget???
We don't even have a state income tax, or a property tax on automobiles / boats.
Like many other states, Florida's constitution mandates it. Florida has a Balanced Budget Amendment, requiring the state not to have a budget deficit. Big deal. Rick Scott is still a crook.
------------------ Drive safely!
[This message has been edited by NEPTUNE (edited 06-01-2011).]
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05:42 PM
82-T/A [At Work] Member
Posts: 22749 From: Florida USA Registered: Aug 2002
Like many other states, Florida's constitution mandates a balanced budget. Big deal. Rick Scott is still a crook.
That's the thing, I was under the impression that almost all state budgets in our republic had to be balanced... but not a single damned one of them are.
Like him or hate him... this was an amazing feat.
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05:50 PM
Cheever3000 Member
Posts: 12398 From: The Man from Tallahassee Registered: Aug 2001
I don't have a problem with Scott - I voted for him - except for the part about making state employees start paying 3% of their salaries for the retirement plan. Ordinarily I wouldn't be bothered with that, even tho I AM a state employee and it does sound fair. But it should start out only affecting employees who make enough to afford such a sudden hit on their paycheck, like those with an annual salary of $50k & up. Then phase in the rest of us peons over time. I make far less than 50k and I live from paycheck to paycheck, and can barely buy the gas to get to work, so to suddenly change the conditions of my employment just like that, well, that's a BIG hit on my grocery budget.
Otherwise, I still don't regret voting for him. Regarding the accusations about his former career, I believe his side of the story. He seems to be a man of character. That's just my opinion. I could not have let myself vote for a career politician, like Bill McCollum or whatever his name was.
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05:57 PM
partfiero Member
Posts: 6923 From: Tucson, Arizona Registered: Jan 2002
Like many other states, Florida's constitution mandates it. Florida has a Balanced Budget Amendment, requiring the state not to have a budget deficit. Big deal. Rick Scott is still a crook.
Sure CA would love to have a crook for a governor and have a balanced budget. Well having half I guess is better than nothing.
The only reason the government "mandates" employees set aside money for their retirement is that most people spend all their money and save nothing. Ninety years ago George Eastman set up a "bonus" plan for his employees because he discovered that his employees once retired had saved nothing and were destitute in retirement. The bonus was to be saved, but when the employees got that bonus, the people blew that also. Social Security was set up for the same reason. But the Kodak bonus was set up in individual accounts in the 60s for investing as an option. But many did not even do that. Social Security was just lumped into a large pool and if you survived to retirement age it was to be used as a suppliment to your savings. People still had no savings and SS became an entitlement income for the retired, children, disabled, illegals and to many who never contributed a dime to the system.
Yet people will not save/invest for their own future and the goverment needs to force them to save. A sad commentary on the state of the general population.
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06:35 PM
ShadowHawk Member
Posts: 376 From: Broward County, Florida Registered: May 2011
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: That's the thing, I was under the impression that almost all state budgets in our republic had to be balanced... but not a single damned one of them are.
Like him or hate him... this was an amazing feat.
Sounds good in such a economic climate to have a balanced budget, hopefully more people can shed some light on how all the states are doing it, if indeed they are.
Here's a quick article I found. Sounds like 49 of the 50 states are unable to run deficits?? Like to hear more about how this works if people know.
quote
Here's what Haridopolos said, in praising the framework of Florida's 2011-12 budget: "While many states and the federal government are floundering under crushing deficit spending, we kept our promise that we would not raise taxes or fees during these difficult economic times." Haridopolos might have been trying to say that many states raised taxes to balance their budget, but we're sticking to his actual words.
Vermont is the only state -- either by statute or constitution -- that can run deficit budgets like the federal government. But it's chosen to balance its budget. All other states are required to pass balanced budgets. We rate Haridopolos' claim False.
I'm kind of confused by your link... the link you sent is half-suggesting that none of the states are actually experiencing any crushing debt whatsoever...?
This link kind of suggests differently, and it's from the very center that this link is referencing:
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: I'm kind of confused by your link... the link you sent is half-suggesting that none of the states are actually experiencing any crushing debt whatsoever...?
This link kind of suggests differently, and it's from the very center that this link is referencing:
Yeah..... you're right your link is full of better information.
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Some critics continue to assert that President George W. Bush’s policies bear little responsibility for the deficits the nation faces over the coming decade — that, instead, the new policies of President Barack Obama and the 111th Congress are to blame. Most recently, a Heritage Foundation paper downplayed the role of Bush-era policies (for more on that paper, see p. 4). Nevertheless, the fact remains: Together with the economic downturn, the Bush tax cuts and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq explain virtually the entire deficit over the next ten years
Just kidding, I found it funny a site you linked had this story in it, I'm guessing it's not one of your normal haunts.
Hahah... well, I've been to it from time to time. I know it's a left-leaning site, but they can't LIE about stuff, only to give an alternate "perspective." But their hard data can't be disputed... only the reasonings they give.
I'm impressed with Florida because unlike the vast majority of other states, Florida hasn't raised corporate taxes (we already have no income tax). Places like Illinois and California have raised taxes over the past year in order to try to balance the budget, but have still had significant shortfalls (as the data would show).
EDIT: I actually have an interesting idea that I think will really help the economy. I'll post it later... not that it will make any difference.
[This message has been edited by 82-T/A [At Work] (edited 06-01-2011).]
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07:50 PM
fierobear Member
Posts: 27079 From: Safe in the Carolinas Registered: Aug 2000
Not only is this an amazing feat, he did this without raising taxes for anyone.
Instead of raising taxes, he cut funding. Some of the funding cuts were good, and some not so good, IMO. For example, the education system took a big hit. I can post details later. But it's been all over the newspapers for the last few weeks. You may be able to find some info or articles on the Orlando Sentinel website, and/or the News Channel 13 website.
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: Hahah... well, I've been to it from time to time. I know it's a left-leaning site, but they can't LIE about stuff, only to give an alternate "perspective." But their hard data can't be disputed... only the reasonings they give.
I'm impressed with Florida because unlike the vast majority of other states, Florida hasn't raised corporate taxes (we already have no income tax). Places like Illinois and California have raised taxes over the past year in order to try to balance the budget, but have still had significant shortfalls (as the data would show).
EDIT: I actually have an interesting idea that I think will really help the economy. I'll post it later... not that it will make any difference.
That's cool, I was just messing with you on that one. Glad you took it as such.
[This message has been edited by newf (edited 06-01-2011).]
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08:18 PM
82-T/A [At Work] Member
Posts: 22749 From: Florida USA Registered: Aug 2002
Instead of raising taxes, he cut funding. Some of the funding cuts were good, and some not so good, IMO. For example, the education system took a big hit. I can post details later. But it's been all over the newspapers for the last few weeks. You may be able to find some info or articles on the Orlando Sentinel website, and/or the News Channel 13 website.
I heard that too... but I have to wonder that if both Democrats and Republicans are angry with him, then either he's totally horrible, or he's actually REALLY good.
My understanding (what I've breifly understood) is that all the cuts that were made, were actually not cuts at all, but in fact the stimulus money ran out. The state took a substantial amount of stimulus money that was used to hire a bunch of new teachers over a year ago, and since that was only a one-time income, the state had no way to continue to pay for it. I remember this being mentioned several times... and as I understood that is where the supposed "cuts" came from.
That said, I've been hearing over the radio the past few days that several teachers will actually get hired again and that they're supposedly supposed to hear later this week? (just did a quick search and couldn't find anything).
Interestingly enough, I have two members of my family who actually work directly for the teachers unions... one for the United Teachers of Dade, and another for the Broward Teacher's Union. Needless to say, I don't really talk about this stuff with them...
quote
Originally posted by newf:
That's cool, I was just messing with you. Glad you took it as such.
I know sometimes I act like a ***** , but I'd never want anyone to feel like they have to walk on egg-shells around me... hah.
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08:24 PM
blackrams Member
Posts: 31841 From: Hattiesburg, MS, USA Registered: Feb 2003
Instead of raising taxes, he cut funding. Some of the funding cuts were good, and some not so good, IMO. For example, the education system took a big hit. I can post details later. But it's been all over the newspapers for the last few weeks. You may be able to find some info or articles on the Orlando Sentinel website, and/or the News Channel 13 website.
Whether or not a funding cut is good or bad really depends on the viewer's perspective. I don't care who you ask, opinions will differ. Balancing a budget will normally piss off most folks because some of their favored programs were cut while other programs they don't like didn't get a big enough cut. It all depends on who you ask. Personally, I'd begin cuts with entitlements but, that would piss off the recipients of those entitlements. The governor is in a no win situation, he's gonna piss off somebody. I don't know much about this governor but, if he balanced FL's budget, he did good in my eyes.
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: I know sometimes I act like a ***** , but I'd never want anyone to feel like they have to walk on egg-shells around me... hah.
It's all good 82-T/A, I might disagree with lots of things (opinions and the like) on here but I can easily seperate that from the person at the core. You're good people in my book. Totally nuts IMO.... but good people none the less. (kidding)
I think you have seen I rarely walk on egg shells here and hope you would never do anything of the like because of me.
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08:29 PM
Rallaster Member
Posts: 9105 From: Indy southside, IN Registered: Jul 2009
It's all good 82-T/A, I might disagree with lots of things (opinions and the like) on here but I can easily seperate that from the person at the core. You're good people in my book. Totally nuts IMO.... but good people none the less. (kidding)
I think you have seen I rarely walk on egg shells here and hope you would never do anything of the like because of me.
Hahah... thanks.
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08:54 PM
ryan.hess Member
Posts: 20784 From: Orlando, FL Registered: Dec 2002
Everything else he's done reminds me of a scorched earth policy. The kicker was when he called his constituents "employees"......... No, Mr. Scott, YOU are our employee.
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08:59 PM
avengador1 Member
Posts: 35467 From: Orlando, Florida Registered: Oct 2001
Gov. Rick Scott is one of the least popular governors in the United States, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll that shows 57 percent of Florida voters disapprove of his job performance.
Only 29 percent favor the job Scott is doing, the poll of 1,196 registered voters shows.
Scott's job-performance numbers mirror public sentiment about the state budget, which cuts spending on schools, health care and programs for the environment. Scott plans to cut even more and is expected today to veto more than $350 million in spending, mulling whether to break predecessor Charlie Crist's 2007 veto record of $459 million.
The poll finds that 54 percent of voters say the budget is "unfair" to someone like them, while 29 percent favor it.
"The data on the perceived fairness of the governor's budget is crucial. When voters by almost 2-1 say his approach is unfair to them, that's a giant flashing political warning sign for Scott," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "When voters don't think they are being treated fairly, they tend to react negatively."
Voters are even more fed up with the economy, perhaps the biggest drag on Scott or any other political leader in the nation. In Florida, 61 percent say they're dissatisfied in general.
When asked about his low poll numbers Wednesday, Scott shrugged it off.
"My job is to get our state back to work. My job is to make sure this is the state that's most likely to succeed," he said on the Sid Rosenberg Show on WQAM radio in South Florida.
Scott's job approval rating is the lowest of any governor out of the six states polled by Quinnipiac, a Connecticut university that also surveys voters in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and its home state. Ohio Gov. John Kasich and Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn have job-approval ratings comparable to Scott's, though the surveys were taken at different times or by pollsters other than Quinnipiac's.
Brown said he was unaware of any poll of any other governor showing a lower approval rating. Nor could pollsters John Zogby, Matt Towery, Brad Coker or Tom Jensen cite a lower rating. A Times/Herald survey of recent polls of controversial governors in large states showed Scott has the lowest approval rating.
The Quinnipiac poll, which has a margin of error of 2.8 percentage points, was released the day before Scott travels to the Republican-friendly retirement community of the Villages, where he plans to host a campaign-style celebration of his signing of the $69.7 billion budget. Scott plans to veto millions of dollars of spending, particularly hometown projects inserted by top members of the Republican-led Legislature, which has job-approval ratings comparable to Scott's.
Scott has called the proposal a "jobs budget" that will help get Florida's economy moving. But despite the nickname, the budget will lead to more layoffs in the short term because it eliminates nearly 4,500 state worker positions, thousands of which are currently filled. Scott says that shrinking the footprint of government will help the private sector flourish.
But 61 percent of voters say they believe the budget won't help create jobs, compared with 26 percent who say it will. Thirty-eight percent say the budget could hurt the state's economy, 31 percent say it will make no difference, and 23 percent say the budget will help.
There are two different ways to view budget cuts. From one perspective, the Republican-controlled Legislature closed a nearly $3.8 billion budget gap that opened up as a result of increased needs and decreased revenues. From another perspective, the Legislature reduced basic bottom-line spending by $700 million when you compare the current budget with the budget Scott plans to sign today.
Either way, 47 percent of voters say the budget cuts too much, 22 percent say the cuts are just about right and 18 percent say lawmakers didn't cut enough.
In a sign Scott has had trouble communicating his message, the poll shows that only 42 percent of voters believe he has kept his word to avoid raising taxes or fees, while 40 percent say he broke the pledge. Though the budget raises college tuition — a measure Scott could veto — he hasn't raised taxes.
Scott's abysmal numbers could make it tougher to press his agenda in the future and make him less of a draw to Republicans running for the White House. Scott's predecessor, Crist, had sky-high poll numbers that led presidential hopefuls to make pilgrimages to Tallahassee. So far, only former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty has paid Scott a courtesy call in the out-of-the-way state Capitol.
Scott's numbers aren't the worst of any governor. Democrat Lawton Chiles in 1992 had an approval rating of 22 percent while 76 percent gave him a negative rating. Chiles went on to beat Jeb Bush in 1994. The pollster who conducted that survey, Brad Coker with Mason-Dixon Polling & Research, pointed out that Chiles' bad poll numbers were the result of the state's botched response to Hurricane Andrew.
"Rick Scott doesn't have that excuse," Coker said.
Public Policy Polling, a North Carolina firm, reported Wednesday that Ohio Republican Gov. John Kasich's approval numbers have plummeted to the point that 33 percent of his state's voters approve of his job performance and 56 percent disapprove — nearly matching Scott's approval ratings in a March survey. Like Kasich and Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker, Scott has successfully called for reductions in taxes, regulations and state-worker benefits.
Public Policy's Tom Jensen said his firm has polled 40 state governors and Scott stands out as one of the least-liked — and the least concerned about it. He said nearly every governor of a big state is struggling due to the economy and voter discontent.
"If there was a governor who wouldn't come back," Jensen said, "it would be Rick Scott because it seems he's the least likely to care if he's not popular."
He may be unpopular but I think he is doing an overall good job. Someone has to make the tough choices and he is doing what he promised he said he would do. I also voted for him.
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10:13 PM
blackrams Member
Posts: 31841 From: Hattiesburg, MS, USA Registered: Feb 2003
Everything else he's done reminds me of a scorched earth policy. The kicker was when he called his constituents "employees"......... No, Mr. Scott, YOU are our employee.
It's all about perspective.
------------------ Ron
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10:17 PM
Formula88 Member
Posts: 53788 From: Raleigh NC Registered: Jan 2001
Thanks for the link. Based on that link, I can see what was said and again, I remind you it's all about perspective. He was making a comparassion, it's right there. Comparing business and employee opinions with that of the public. Unless there's something else, I'd have to call partisan politics on this one. He did not call his constitutents his employees in the provided statement.
quote
Originally posted from the provided link: “I understand there’s people that like things and don’t like things,” Scott said. “It’s really no different than in business. Because in business everyone doesn’t agree with everything you do. All your employees won’t say, ‘Oh yeah, I think you should exactly do this instead of that.’”
If Cliff is willing to give me the time, I will program a spell checker in here! hahah... but thanks for the correction. I only need to be corrected 2 more times and then I'll remember.
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07:48 AM
texasfiero Member
Posts: 4674 From: Houston, TX USA Registered: Jun 2003
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: If Cliff is willing to give me the time, I will program a spell checker in here! hahah... but thanks for the correction. I only need to be corrected 2 more times and then I'll remember.
When you get the spelling warning, just right click on the word for suggested spellings.
When you get the spelling warning, just right click on the word for suggested spellings.
But he was so far off that MS Word would have tried to replace 'fesicious' with "felicitous," "fastidious," or "delicious." Not trying to knock you twice for the same word Todd, but I ain't walking on no egg shells.
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10:43 AM
texasfiero Member
Posts: 4674 From: Houston, TX USA Registered: Jun 2003
But he was so far off that MS Word would have tried to replace 'fesicious' with "felicitous," "fastidious," or "delicious." Not trying to knock you twice for the same word Todd, but I ain't walking on no egg shells.
Unnerstand. Some folks are not aware that the capability is already there.
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10:52 AM
82-T/A [At Work] Member
Posts: 22749 From: Florida USA Registered: Aug 2002
Unnerstand. Some folks are not aware that the capability is already there.
Actually, that's not on Pennock's... I believe that's a built-in Microsoft "plug-in" for Internet Explorer that gives you that functionality. Wasn't sure if you knew that already, but it's not on Pennocks.
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11:27 AM
texasfiero Member
Posts: 4674 From: Houston, TX USA Registered: Jun 2003
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: Actually, that's not on Pennock's... I believe that's a built-in Microsoft "plug-in" for Internet Explorer that gives you that functionality. Wasn't sure if you knew that already, but it's not on Pennocks.
Yep. Its a browser function. Looks for what ever is in the loaded dictionary. It just appears that MANY don't know.
Here is the FireFox dictionary access:
mispelled
Right-click in the text area.
If you have trouble spelling, check your dictionary and USE it!
Edit: Changed the graphic
[This message has been edited by texasfiero (edited 06-02-2011).]
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12:22 PM
82-T/A [At Work] Member
Posts: 22749 From: Florida USA Registered: Aug 2002
Yep. Its a browser function. Looks for what ever is in the loaded dictionary. It just appears that MANY don't know.
Here is the FireFox dictionary access:
If you have trouble spelling, check your dictionary and USE it!
Honestly, I don't know if I necessarily benefit from the use of a dictionary all the time, or if I like being corrected better. I'd rather learn, and I can't tell if the process of spelling correction might simply become routine, vs. the seldom post correcting me (which I feel I am more apt to remember).
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12:30 PM
texasfiero Member
Posts: 4674 From: Houston, TX USA Registered: Jun 2003
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: Honestly, I don't know if I necessarily benefit from the use of a dictionary all the time, or if I like being corrected better. I'd rather learn, and I can't tell if the process of spelling correction might simply become routine, vs. the seldom post correcting me (which I feel I am more apt to remember).
I know, its just that red squiggly line that bugs me. When I see it, I know sumthin's WRONG, so I like to get it right (pet peeve) before posting.
