Austin Democrat says GOP leaders use 'trickery' to patch over budget woes

DMN 11/15/10
Austin Democrat says GOP leaders use 'trickery' to patch over budget woes

AUSTIN — Texas’ leaders must quit writing budgets in “back rooms” and stop hiding the state’s fiscal troubles, a leading Democratic lawmaker said today.

Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, said the state’s GOP leadership has used “accounting trickery” and dispensed tax cuts without equivalent reductions in spending.

Their “irresponsible handling” of the budget, paired with a severe recession, has gouged a two-year budget hole of at least $20 billion for lawmakers to repair when they return to work on Jan. 11, Watson said.

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Watson also assailed, as he has for several years, how the state raises billions from special-purpose fees but then refuses to spend the money. It instead holds the money, which allows budget writers to mask deficits in general-revenue spending.

“No one should stand for the hypocrisy that brags about balancing the budget through sacrifice, yet quietly deceives Texans by taking more of their money through hidden taxes and fees,” said Watson, a former Austin mayor and chairman of the state air-pollution control board.

Senator Kirk Watson's website 11/15/10

Honesty Agenda part 5: The Agenda
Monday, November 15, 2010

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These malignancies don't merely contaminate the budget. They don't simply look bad. As I've said, they are in no small part a cause of our current challenges – and we must cut them out of the system.

And while I know – we all know – this will be a challenging year, we must not pass on this imperative for reform. Because if nothing else, we will never be able to confront our larger budget problem until we understand what we’re facing.

In the coming weeks, I’ll introduce a three-part package of reforms to create an “Honesty Agenda” in the Texas Capitol, transforming the ways that public money is appropriated, reported, and ultimately spent. These changes will truly allow Texas to be run like a business, and they’ll protect Texans from reckless decisions that leave us scrambling to meet responsibilities, provide necessities, and keep the state from building a future.