TRENTON – Senate leaders on both sides of the aisle issued their reactions to Gov. Chris Christie’s signing off on the state’s $31.7 billion budget Friday.
Senate Republican Leader Tom Kean (R-21) lauded the governor for his decision to slash $361 million from the plan crafted by Democrats in the Legislature. Kean also criticized Democrats for not delivering immediate tax relief.
“Just as Trenton Democrats found over $100 million in cuts to redirect funds to their ‘priorities’ in the budget, Governor Christie has used the line item veto to free up ample funding for the single most important thing we can do for New Jersey’s economy: giving broad-based tax relief to families and job creators,” Kean said in a statement.
“My colleagues from across the aisle have yet to answer a very basic, common-sense question: How can New Jersey compete with the rest of the nation for jobs and economic investment when government takes more money from residents and businesses here than anywhere else in America?” Kean asked.
Sen. Paul Sarlo, (D-36), chairman of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, fired back in a statement, saying the Legislature must act in a fiscally responsible manner.
“The governor’s insistence on tax cuts now, before we know if we can truly afford them and six months before they would even take effect, is a platform built on national campaign rhetoric rather than fiscal reality. Let’s be perfectly clear: we all want to cut taxes. But first we absolutely need to be fiscally responsible,” he said.
In the lower chamber, Assembly Budget Committee Chairman Vincent Prieto (D-32) vowed to “review each line-item veto carefully” to study any impacts.
“While it’s unfortunate that the governor, once again, turned his back on women’s health and the working poor, I am comforted that he recognized the fragility of the nursing home industry and maintained most of the funding we had restored,” Prieto said in a statement.
“Overall, Democrats advanced a fiscally responsible budget that leaves open the possibility of a tax cut if the governor’s revenue estimates hold true. It was incumbent upon him to sign it and he did,” he said.
Assembly Republican Leader Jon Bramnick (R-21) agreed with his Senate counterparts, saying Democrats failed to deliver immediate tax relief to residents.
“One of the most important goals which still remains is delivering immediate tax relief to our hard-working middle class families. The Democrats need to work with the governor and Republicans in the Legislature to make this happen now,” he said in a statement.
“Taxpayers should not be denied the help they were promised. Delaying tax relief is unacceptable. Everyone who has sacrificed over the past two years deserves this relief now,” he said.
