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"We
either are going to come out of (the budget shortfall)
in the top or we are going to come out of it as a
third-rate state and much of it is going to be
determined by this legislative session and the road
that we take. I am going to do my constitutional part.
The legislature has got to do theirs."
--
Gov. Mike Easley, addressing community college leaders |
Easley
criticizes legislators
foir seeking cuts in education
Addressing
a crowd of 600 community college supporters, Gov. Mike Easley
on Tuesday said the General Assembly should not cut one dime
of spending on education and would not have to if lawmakers
followed the budget document he submitted two months ago.
Speaking to the annual Academic Excellence Awards luncheon
hosted by the N.C. Community College System, the governor
reminded the audience that he submitted a balanced budget to
the General Assembly in March that included $209 million in
new education spending. The governor’s budget blueprint
relies heavily on new revenue from closing tax loopholes and
creating a state lottery.
"We either are going to come out of (the budget
shortfall) in the top or we are going to come out of it as a
third-rate state and much of it is going to be determined by
this legislative session and the road that we take," he
said. "I am going to do my constitutional part. The
legislature has got to do theirs."
Easley had many encouraging words for the community colleges.
"We need to increase the funding, not cut the funding for
community colleges." The governor encouraged legislators
in the room to "think about the long term" when
considering education budget cuts.
The
AEA ceremony honored 118 outstanding students. Two high
achievers from each of the 58 community colleges and the North
Carolina Center for Applied Textile Technology received
special recognition from the NCCCS.
The ceremony was also used as a time to remind the legislators
who were present of the importance of community colleges.
NCCCS President H. Martin Lancaster told the group that deep
budget cuts would adversely affect community colleges.
"The opportunity to achieve excellence, as these students
have done, is in jeopardy for students now in our colleges and
those yet to come," he said.
"This is a great day to celebrate education," Easley
said. He added this was also a time to "pay attention to
community colleges and stop taking (them) for granted."
He admitted that this is a tough time for the economy, but
noted that a downturn directly affects community colleges.
"Every one percent increase in unemployment means a four
percent increase in community college enrollment, " he
said. He pointed out that community colleges are where the
people go when they are looking to move into what he called
the "new economy."
Easley reminded the group assembled, which included about 40
legislators, that it was important to invest in the people,
"not in good times, but in all times." He suggested
that education funding was imperative, especially with 1.3
million high school students expected to graduate in North
Carolina next year. "We have to prepare for them,"
the governor said.
The governor suggested to the community college personnel
present that those legislators who were in attendance
"got it" and then encouraged the lawmakers to create
a balanced budget with a "message of progress." The
governor closed by reminding the group that the economic
shortfall will end. The question, he said, is how the state
will come out of it. "North Carolina is going
forward," he insisted.
Afterwards, some of the legislators attending the event,
including some of Easley’s fellow Democrats, reacted
negatively to the governor’s remarks. Some said they felt
the governor was unfairly placing the burden on them to make
the tough choices about balancing the state budget. Rep. Dewey
Hill (D-Columbus) told reporters Easley "sort of laid it
on the legislators. We're going to be the bad guys."
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