2011 Florida Budget Cuts, Results Reviewed at Brandon Chamber Meal

One word came to mind as state lawmakers discussed the actions taken in Tallahassee at this year’s legislative session. As  Sen. Ronda  Storms, R-Valrico, put it: “Painful.”

With state Rep. Rich Glorioso, R-Plant City, and state Rep. Rachel Burgin, R-Riverview, by her side,  Storms also use the word  “excruciating,” as she set the mood for the annual Legislative Update Luncheon hosted by the Greater Brandon Chamber of Commerce on May 26, at the Crowne Plaza at Sabal Park.

“It was excruciating,” Storms said, as reported by the Bloomingdale Patch. “In my tenure as a senator, I’ve had to make cuts and I’ve [also] been able to spend. I’m a much bigger fan of spending.”

This year’s session, she added, was “a very difficult situation.”

That’s no surprise to constituents, who have been reading about the $69.7 million budget Gov. Rick Scott signed into law May 26, after vetoeing a record $615 million from the 2011-12 spending plan passed by legislators.

The legislators at the chamber luncheon, as reported by the Bloomingdale Patch, talked in personal terms about the state budget,  and the tough economic times that brought the state to where it is today, with Storms leading the way with a comment about her husband’s 30-year-old landscaping business.

“It’s been brutal,” Storms said. “We’ve had to cut hours and make layoffs. It’s so heartbreaking when you know these people have families they have to support. So this subject isn’t just an abstract to me when I go to Tallahassee. We are just like many businesses in Florida.”

One of the hardest decisions they made in Tallahassee was requiring government employees to contribute 3 percent of their pay to their retirement funds, Burgin said.

“It was very painful because many public employees don’t make a lot of money,” she said. But then, neither do a lot of people in the private sector, and they have to continue working well beyond their retirement age, she said. Her own grandmother, she said, didn’t retire from the family produce business until the age of 91.

Glorioso said residents have yet to feel the impact of the cuts, but they will.

“You can’t do business as usual with less money,” he said.

Painfully aware of that is Hillsborough County School Superintendent MaryEllen Elia, who noted in her most recent budget update, dated May 5, that the “statewide cuts for education are deeper than expected.”

“We expected the revenue shortfall to be in the range of $75 million,” she noted. “Instead, it appears that the shortfall for Hillsborough County Public Schools will be $100 million.”

Elia noted that school officials want to avoid layoffs and furloughs and will “continue to stick to our priorities and work to reduce the impact on our classrooms, students and our employees.”

She noted in the same update that some “new revenue” will help a bit, but realizes that part of that comes at the expense of employees’ take-home pay.

Under the new state budget, state employees under the Florida Retirement System (FRS) are required to contribute 3 percent of their salaries, before taxes, into the FRS. “That contribution will enable school districts to not spend as much money to support the FRS system for our employees,” Elia noted.

The update notes that employees making $25,000 a year before taxes, under the 3 percent requirement, would see their take-home pay reduced by $750. “For an employee making $50,000 a yar, that results in a salary reduction of $1,500,” the report adds.

RELATED COVERAGE AND LINKS:

• State Legislators Discuss the 2011 Session With Chamber Chambership
  
• Rick Scott Vetoes Record $615m From Budget
• Hillsborough County School Superintendent MaryEllen Elia's May 5 Budget Update