Budget Cuts
As I stated regarding last year's budget, I do not think the President's attempts to make deep cuts in so many important programs is realistic. This year's budget, unfortunately, is more of the same wrong priorities that have taken our country in the wrong direction.
There is no question that we are now faced with an enormous deficit that will impact our economy for years to come. However, while I am pressing for us to be able to get out of Iraq as soon as possible by transferring the security functions to the Iraqis, I recognize that we have many pressing needs in the budget here at home. Our budget priorities must reflect this.
We should not be extending large tax cuts for the wealthiest of our citizens while zeroing out or severely cutting back on Medicare and Medicaid, education, job training, student aid, and numerous other programs that help people in our area. I opposed the tax cuts for this reason, and I will oppose cuts to these important programs.
Working Families in Pennsylvania Struggling Under Rising Health Care Cost:
The budget cuts Medicare by $36 billion over the next five years and $105 billion over the next ten years. These cuts include cuts in payments to hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, ambulance services, and other providers and increases in Medicare premiums for certain beneficiaries. At the same time that the budget cuts Medicare funding, it protects the special interests, leaving intact the $10 billion Medicare slush fund for HMOs. In addition, the budget cuts Medicaid by $13.7 billion over the next five years.
Tax Cuts for the Wealthy:
This budget squanders trillions of dollars on permanent tax cuts for the wealthy – giving Pennsylvania’s wealthiest one percent $11,239 in tax breaks, while middle-income families would get $48.
Veterans & Military:
Everyday, stories from Iraq and Afghanistan remind of us the great debt we owe to those who serve. 12,114 brave men and women from Pennsylvania are currently serving their country in Iraq and Afghanistan. This budget funds the National Guard at well below authorized levels, even tough out troops are already strained.
For the fourth year in a row, the budget raises health care costs for hundreds of thousands of veterans, imposing new co-payments on prescription drugs and enrollment fees that will cost veterans hundreds of millions of dollars. This will drive more than 234,000 veterans out of veterans’ health care. Last year, 1,602 Pennsylvanian veterans were shut out the of the VA health care system because of decreased funding. The budget also increases TRICARE health care premiums for the nation’s military retirees.
Job Training and Education Cuts:
Since 2000, over 180,000 manufacturing jobs have been lost in Pennsylvania, with over 300,000 people currently looking for a job. Yet the budget eliminates $126 million in funding for job training and employment services in PA.
A number of important grants for job training are cut including: Adult Training Grants by $145 million (17%), Youth Training Grants by $100 million (11%), and Dislocated Worker Training Grants by $223 million (17%). In addition, Job Corps is cut by $56 million.
Despite very modest increases for math and science education, this budget cuts overall discretionary appropriations for the Education Department by 3.8 percent below this year’s level, even before adjusting for inflation.
The budget provides $15.4 billion less in funding for education than promised by the No Child Left Behind Act. Under the President’s budget, the cumulative funding shortfall for No Child Left Behind would be $55 billion. The budget completely eliminates several key education programs, including Vocational Education State Grants, Educational Technology State Grants and Safe and Drug-Free School State Grants.
The budget once again freezes the maximum Pell Grant at $4,050 – meaning that it will be frozen for the fifth year in a row. In addition, a total of $664 million will be cut from the Perkins Loan program, cutting loans for nearly half a million students.
Investing in Communities:
This budget cuts back on programs that help communities meet their most pressing needs. The budget proposal: eliminates Community Service Block Grants ($631 million), cuts $500 million from Social Services Block Grants and cuts $1.1 billion from Community Development Block Grants.
It also cuts funding for rural communities. Once again this year, the budget cuts rural development programs, freezes funding for rural education, and phases out rural health grants. It cuts $5 billion in funding for farm subsidies, including crop insurance over the next decade, cutting funding for farmers growing everything from cotton, rice, corn, soybeans, and wheat.
