Your state legislature in Raleigh welcomes your input on the state budget. It?s a participatory process, and elected officials want to know what you think so they can make informed choices. And don?t worry, they won?t mind explaning their decisions to you because they are based on solid information and sound principles.
Oh, and they are all space aliens from the planet Huarwhekiddin.
A good piece in Thursday?s Rocky Mount Telegram explains one of the dirty-little secrets about legislative business, particularly of the fiscal variety: it?s designed to happen quickly, with votes following shortly after public revelation to minimize public debate. So the delay of the roll-out of the House?s 2004-05 budget is making some folks in the Legislative Building sweat:
A Friday budget release leaves lawmakers at the mercy of a legion of interest groups waiting to see if their programs will be cut, since the weekend will let them give their representatives an earful about day care spending, school cuts, hospital reimbursements and the like.
“It’s the worst timing,” said N.C. Sen. A.B. Swindell, D-Nash.
Hey, I?m probably going to favor most of these savings, so obviously I think they can be defended. Others apparently don?t agree.
