Raimondo budget resonates

By John Howell and Kelcy Dolan
Posted 2/4/16

Even some of Gov. Gina Raimondo’s harshest critics like the big picture of her $9 billion budget proposal and unwavering focus on the state’s economy and creating more and better-paying …

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Raimondo budget resonates

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Even some of Gov. Gina Raimondo’s harshest critics like the big picture of her $9 billion budget proposal and unwavering focus on the state’s economy and creating more and better-paying jobs.

Yet even some of her greatest supporters question whether she can pull it off – and, in particular, whether the state can afford the $241 million in bonding she proposes to put on the November ballot.

“I have mixed emotions,” said Republican Rep. Joseph Trillo. “There are some excellent ideas to spur job development. My concern is the additional money.”

Another Warwick representative who chaired Raimondo’s campaign for governor, K. Joseph Shekarchi, said, “So far things look good, but the devil’s in the details, and we will have to wait to see what happens down the road.”

Rep. Joseph McNamara, also a member of the House leadership, found the tone and theme of the governor’s speech “upbeat and moving forward.” He called her state of the state address “one of the better speeches I’ve heard.”

McNamara doesn’t see Raimondo’s budget producing a contentious legislative session, with debate focused on whether the state can afford the initiatives and the state’s indebtedness.

In contrast to Raimondo’s first budget, the plan she put forward Tuesday does not contain lightening-rod taxes such as her proposal for a state property tax on high-valued second homes – which was quickly labeled as the “Taylor Swift tax” – or seemingly insurmountable challenges such as reinventing Medicaid for savings of almost $100 million. The tax on high-value properties was dropped, and the Medicaid program has saved roughly $70 million.

State Sen. William Walaska found Raimondo’s speech and what he has seen of her budget consistent with her objectives.

“Jobs are number one, and to make Rhode Island more business friendly,” he said. Asked what he thought might hold the spotlight, he pointed to the governor’s truck-tolling legislation. Last week, the House and Senate leadership signed on to a revised measure that would reduce the need and cost of borrowing because of increased federal highway funding and lower the maximum one-way daily toll across the state from $30 to $20.

As for initiatives in the budget, Walaska said, “I’m a fiscal conservative. We have to be careful in terms of bonding. It’s OK as long as we have the money to pay for it, but it’s so easy to say spend the money and pull the lever because schools need the work.”

In her speech, Raimondo urged rapid passage of the truck-tolling bill.

“Let’s reject the politics of procrastination and pass RhodeWorks. Rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges is essential to attracting great companies, and we’ll put thousands of Rhode Islanders to work in the process,” she said to applause.

That’s not going to happen if Republican Rep. Patricia Morgan has her way.

Earlier this year, she hosted a rally protesting tolls and argues that there is already the funding to fix bridges if the state does away with “crony capitalism and wasteful spending.”

Morgan argues that although the state is starting to see a turn around, hard working families haven’t seen the return of those benefits.

“Sure our economy is growing, but the average family’s ability to pay bills hasn’t,” Morgan said “We have to make due with what we have. I think this plan is very shortsighted.”

She said families have been forced to “adjust their budgets, rearrange their spending,” and the state needs to do the same.

Others, like Shekarchi, seem to be on board with instituting tolls with the new, revised proposal. Although he won’t make a final decision until later this week after hearing more testimony, Shekarchi believes he will vote for approval.

“I hear the concerns,” he said. “People are worried the tolls will be extended to cars, but I don’t see that happening. We can’t

live by unrealistic, unsubstantiated fears.”

Raimondo’s initiatives to stimulate business development, reduce business costs, and create new jobs got a thumbs-up from McNamara. He called a reduction in the unemployment tax “huge for employers in our city.” He also backs job training and agreed with the governor that no one should have to work three jobs to support a family.

Trillo, who said his optimism for the governor has faded since she took office, suggested she listen to others than her closest aides, the leadership, and friends.

“She has a strong sense of arrogance about her. It’s ‘join me and everybody else is stupid,’” said Trillo. He pointed to her hiring of outsiders who he said don’t have relationships in the community and seemingly whose only interest when it comes to the General Assembly is the leadership. He called the governor’s treatment of legislators “shabby.”

“For the most part we’re third-class citizens,” he said.

Trillo was also critical of Raimondo’s use of Greystone to expand jobs here rather than move to Virginia as an example how legislative changes made in the past year have improved the business environment and created jobs.

“We get this company with 25 jobs and Massachusetts gets GE with 10,000,” he said.

In her state of the state address, Raimondo pointed out the state’s housing market had the strongest year since 2004; the economy created more than 8,000 jobs; and the unemployment rate dropped more than any other state in the nation.

When it came to education, Raimondo outlined several initiatives, including a revised funding formula for elementary and secondary schools; nearly $40 million in new funding; free PSAT and SAT for students; and strengthening high schoolers’ ability to obtain college credits prior to graduation through the Prepare RI initiative.

She also proposed tuition freezes at public institutions of higher education, increasing scholarship opportunities for college students, and expanding the Wavemaker Fellowship to keep Rhode Island graduates in the state.

Raimondo received around 20 recommendations from the Funding Formula Work Group in the beginning of January. From those recommendations, she is looking to make adjustments to the way money follows students when they transfer to a charter, as well as education for English language learners and students with special needs.

She said that in speaking with teachers and principals across the state, she heard “over and over again” how they had students who require extra resources and know the best practices, but that overall without substantial funding it was a financial strain.

“It only makes sense to invest in these students now,” she said.

She said the state would pay one way or another, either early on to get students prepared, or when there are students leaving school without the necessary skills.

McNamara likes the plan, saying it recognizes the additional expenses public schools face in educating special needs students.

Should some of the governor’s sentiments surrounding education follow through, Warwick could be looking at some additional state funding.

Superintendent Philip Thornton, although he hadn’t seen the address, said, “It sounds like our district may see a few more dollars from this plan, which is certainly good to hear.”

Mayor Scott Avedisian said Raimondo’s plan to fully fund Payment In Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) would mean an additional $300,000 to the city, and that her plan for schools would net another $1.2 million for Warwick.

With Warwick’s district seeing a lot of changes for the next school year, including consolidation and implementing universal full-day kindergarten, Thornton is excited for the funding formula to be solidified. Numbers for the revised formula will be released in the next few weeks, but if Warwick gets a substantial increase, Thornton would like to make a push for technology and bringing classrooms one-to-one with Chromebooks.

Raimondo addressed charter schools and students with special needs. Although Warwick sees very few students leave for charter schools, it has one of the highest percentages of special needs students, with 18.2 percent in 2015. Thornton is also happy to hear that both the PSAT and SAT could be free for 10th and 11th graders.

“Students who take those tests typically perform better in and out of the classroom,” Thornton said. “It’s a good exercise and assessment for a student going to college or into a career.”

McNamara suggested that the SAT could replace the PARCC test for seniors.

Both Morgan and Shekarchi were happy to see Raimondo focus on education, but both saw different needs for the state, especially when it came to higher education.

Shekarchi believes that public institutions need to look at the job market, adjusting their curriculums to the occupations most in demand. Morgan, on the other hand, says that URI, RIC, and CCRI have all found their own “niche” within higher education and should work on perfecting what they are already good at.

“These schools shouldn’t be forced to compete with one another,” she said. “These institutions should excel in whatever their students are attending them for. We need to make sure those running the schools are on the top of their game.”

They agreed, though, that Rhode Island needs to be producing a better, more skilled workforce, a sentiment shared in Raimondo’s address.

One of Raimondo’s initiatives is to have the state’s colleges and universities “partner with businesses to create a place where researchers can work alongside business people to turn their inventions into new products, services, business, and – most importantly – jobs.”

In helping this progress, she is similarly expanding the Research & Development tax credit to “encourage people to develop and to make new, cutting-edge products in Rhode Island.”

Raimondo wants to see a “statewide competition,” funded by bonds, to build an “innovation campus” in Rhode Island.

Avedisian said that this would only be one more “incentive” for the city, especially with CCRI’s main campus in Warwick.

“It would offer a lot of opportunities for the businesses of Warwick,” he said.

Morgan though called for complete school reform when it came to elementary and secondary education, acknowledging the discouraging PARCC scores where about 30 percent of the state’s students scored proficiently.

“We are failing 70 percent of our kids,” Morgan said. “The governor said we will be looking to Massachusetts, and I hope we do.”

She said Rhode Island’s northern neighbor sees more school choice, but Rhode Island is “killing it.” Shekarchi said there has always been “tension” between public and charter schools, and that the focus should shift to what works best for Rhode Island students and start the conversation there.

In her address, Raimondo said, “All of our kids deserve better, and I know – acting together – that we can improve our schools so children can get the skills they need to succeed in today’s economy.”

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