Governor O'Malley Unveils FY 2010 Budget
Closes $2 billion FY 2010 deficit; Protects funding for education and Maryland’s working families
ANNAPOLIS, MD (January 21, 2009) – Governor Martin O’Malley, joined today by Lieutenant Governor Anthony Brown, released the FY 2010 budget for the State of Maryland. In the midst of a national economic recession, Maryland’s FY 2010 budget closes a projected $2 billion shortfall and protects the state’s progress in public education, workforce investments, and affordable higher education.
“These are not easy times, and here in Maryland we haven’t been immune to the national recession. Our families are struggling. Our family-owned businesses are struggling. And just as our people have to find ways to do more with less, so too must those of us in government,” said Governor Martin O’Malley.
Governor O’Malley’s proposed budget closes a $2 billion shortfall for FY 2010, and overall general fund expenditures decrease by 1.3 percent. The proposed budget is the first budget in State history to propose a negative Spending Affordability growth rate of 1.57 percent, which is significantly lower than the General Assembly Spending Affordability Committee’s recommended .7% increase. The proposed FY 2010 budget also assumes Maryland will receive $350 million from the federal stimulus, which is a conservative estimate given reports that States could receive more than $200 billion in relief.
Governor O’Malley continued, “This budget is, by necessity, painfully lean. We were forced to cut or level-fund many worthy programs that are important to the future of our State. But because they are important to our State we worked hard to protect these programs and hold them harmless this year.
“At the same time, we are not willing to abandon the important progress we’ve achieved for our families these past two years, including the progress that led Education Week to rank our public school system #1 in America just a week ago. Nor are we willing to turn our back on our workforce and Maryland families who are struggling in this difficult economy to make ends meet.”
Governor O’Malley’s proposed budget contains increases in five key priority areas:
- K-12 Public Education and School Construction,
- Higher Education,
- A Safety Net for Maryland’s Families,
- Public Safety,
- Environmental Protection.
“Governor O’Malley and I understand the challenges we face and the important work ahead of us,” Lieutenant Governor Brown said. “We are confident, though, that we will get through these tough times by coming together and protecting the progress we’ve made on behalf of working families over the last two years.”
K-12 Public Education and School Construction
Since the O’Malley-Brown Administration took office, State funding for education aid has increased $932 million while general fund spending on all other activities has declined by $235 million.
Even in difficult times, Governor O’Malley’s FY 2010 budget supports the progress of Maryland’s children, teachers, and parents in the nation’s #1 ranked public school system. The FY 2010 budget fully funds the Thornton Bridge to Excellence Plan, proposing a $5.4 billion investment in K-12 education, a $68.3 million increase over FY 2009. In addition, the capital budget includes a proposed $260.3 million for public school construction and renovation, bringing the O’Malley-Brown Administration’s investment in school construction to an unprecedented level – over $1 billion in just three years. In addition, Governor O’Malley’s FY 2010 budget includes $774.3 million to fully fund teacher and librarian retirement pension costs.
Higher Education
Four Maryland institutions now rank among the best values in public higher education – Salisbury University, Towson University, University of Maryland Baltimore County, and St. Mary’s College. Governor O’Malley’s budget seeks to maintain and improve upon this distinction.
Because investments in Maryland’s workforce are more important now during a national recession than at any other time, Governor O’Malley’s proposed budget includes a fourth straight year of zero percent increase for in-state college tuition, moving the University System of Maryland from the sixth highest tuition in the nation in 2004 to an anticipated 18th.
A Safety Net for Maryland’s Families
Under the O’Malley-Brown Administration, Maryland has enacted sweeping legislation to protect homeowners from foreclosure, established America’s first Living Wage law, expanded access to health care for 100,000 more Marylanders, made health care more affordable for small businesses, closed the Medicare “donut hole” providing seniors with affordable prescription drug coverage, extended the refundable earned income tax credit to adults without dependents and reduced income taxes for working families.
The FY 2010 proposed budget protects these priorities by including more than $5 billion to support Medical Assistance benefits that ensure 700,000 Marylanders access to health care and more than $450 million of federal funds for food stamps for needy families. Furthermore, the budget provides record levels of State funding – $90 million – to help low-income households pay their energy bills, and assumes more than $100 million of refundable earned income tax credits for working Maryland families.
In addition, the proposed budget includes more than $22 million for school lunch and other nutrition programs to help end childhood hunger in Maryland and increase performance in Maryland classrooms, as well as increased funding for the Women, Infants, and Children program by more than $10 million.
Governor O’Malley’s proposed budget includes funding to ensure that all Marylanders are able to find employment and succeed in the workplace, including $65.6 million for unemployment insurance programs to provide critical assistance for families in need and $70.3 million for business development programs that assist small and minority businesses, promote technology-based enterprises, and help grow Maryland’s economy.
In addition, the FY 2010 budget provides funding for services and training for adult learners, ex-offenders and the disabled, including $31.9 million to provide the adults with the opportunity to earn high school diplomas, continue their education and training at the postsecondary level, and enhance employment opportunities. The budget also includes $51.8 million to help individuals with disabilities obtain and succeed in employment, largely through vocational rehabilitation services.
Improving Public Safety
The O’Malley-Brown Administration has made significant progress in improving Maryland’s public safety efforts, including the establishment of regional, cross-border law-enforcement partnerships, improvement of critical law enforcement protection equipment, and the beginning stages of Maryland’s first-ever statewide interoperable communications system.
Governor O’Malley’s proposed budget continues this commitment to the safety and security of Maryland’s families by including $2.1 billion for public safety, contributing to a $160 million increase over three years. This commitment includes full funding for police aid at $66 million, $40 million for two new State Police helicopters so Maryland’s Medevac system remains a national model, and an investment of $10 million toward a statewide wireless communications system as part of a five-year $110 million commitment to the project.
Protecting Our Environment
The real threats that endanger Maryland’s precious national resources do not vanish in times of recession, and therefore Governor O’Malley’s FY 2010 budget includes funding to protect our land, our water, and our air for future generations.
To protect the important progress made on environmental protection during the O’Malley-Brown Administration, the proposed budget includes full funding of Program Open Space at $31.9 million and investment of $27.6 million for Agricultural Land Preservation. In addition, the budget proposes $25 million for the Chesapeake 2010 Trust Fund, $164.5 million in Bay restoration funds, and a record $17.7 million for cover crops.
Governor O’Malley’s announcement of the FY 2010 proposed budget also included an outline of the proposed budget reductions for FY 2009. Governor O’Malley proposed $154 million of additional cuts for FY 2009 including savings from furloughs, local aid reductions, abolition of 250 vacant positions, and additional agency budget reductions.
“Throughout our great Revolutionary history, our greatest triumphs have always come at times when we’ve faced our greatest adversity,” Governor O’Malley wrote to the leaders of the Maryland General Assembly in presenting his budget. “We are going to get through these tough times the way we always have: by working together. We have made tremendous progress for Maryland families these past two years. Now, when our families need us most, we are united in our commitment to stand up and fight to protect our progress.”
View Budget Outline and Supplemental Graphs
