Perdue orders more cuts, digs into other funds

Raleigh, N.C. — Gov. Beverly Perdue ordered state agencies Wednesday to cut another 2 percent from their spending this year and transferred $300 million from various funds to create an emergency account for state operations.

“The state constitution requires that I balance the state budget, and I will do that while protecting public education as much as possible,” Perdue said in a statement.

Fiscal analysts have projected the state budget deficit could hit $2 billion this year and could surpass $3 billion in the 2009-10 fiscal year.

The additional cuts mean agencies now have to reduce their spending during the 2008-09 fiscal year by 9 percent. The size of the cuts has been rising steadily since former Gov. Mike Easley ordered 2 percent cuts in September.

Perdue is using $100 million each from the Clean Water Management Trust Fund and the Public School Building Capital Fund and $50 million each from the Education Lottery Reserve Fund and the Public School Textbook Fund to set up an emergency reserve for state operations.

The state faces a cash-flow crunch every spring until corporate income tax payments are made on April 15, officials said. The emergency fund would help cover expenses until then, they said.

The fund transfers would be managed so existing activities supported by the special funds wouldn't be impacted, officials said.

Wake County officials said the money diverted from the education funds will have no impact on the county budget.

The state Department of Public Instruction told school districts to turn back as much money as possible to the state, saying it would make more money available to schools in the 2009-10 fiscal year.

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rmc10 do you have any ideal what it takes to run a school systems and lot of parents cant offard to pay to transport their kids ...and kids are different now days you have to have more then one principal and to change all schools back to 10 months wont work to many kids in the county thatis why they went 12 months to help with over crowdness which still is a problem.

agentm
February 26, 2009 11:31 a.m.

Bev could probably get a lot more money from Wake County Public Schools if she would have them go back to traditional school schedule county wide, save the 12-months of expenses on building, save on 12-mo of bus fuel and maintenance, change the students per classroom by adding 8 students per class, cut 1to 1 ratio for paraprofessionals, require the parents of handicap students to pay for a part of private transportation to school, a paraprofessional, stop providing free/reduced breakfasts, reduce the assistant principals per school, stop funding expensive overnight field trips, etc. etc. But most of all stop busing children for economic diversity. Wake County Public Schools' budget is way bloated, especially for new school construction.

RMC10
February 26, 2009 10:51 a.m.

Why do we keep sending these folks back election after election? chfdcpt

this year it was because black churches brainwashed people into thinking that when you vote youre supposed to put a check beside Obama and then a check beside straight democratic ticket...thanks

arfamr1005
February 26, 2009 10:49 a.m.

9%, 10%, 15%, it won't matter; Perdue can't balance this budget with discretionary program cuts, not when about 75% of the budget is made up of mandated programs (education, social and crime control). Cut them all 100% and it wouldn't be enough.

Cutting meat and poultry inspections sounds like a stupid idea given the latest news about not enough inspections already.

Oh, and that hiring freeze for the state? Not so much, actually; our office currently has two positions taking applications. Both middle management positions, and both are duplicate positions (people at that level doing that job already). Go figure.

Bendal1
February 26, 2009 10:44 a.m.

“The state constitution requires that I balance the state budget, and I will do that while protecting public education as much as possible,” Perdue said in a statement." --- Translation: I'm getting ready to slash the education budget across the state!