In his last budget address, Gov. Jack Markell outlined a proposed $4.1 billion 2017 state budget that adds a small pay increase for state employees and seeks a larger contribution for health insurance. Markell is at the end of his second and final term.
Priorities include education and economic opportunity. Funding for new programs was on the modest side.
The governor worked to blunt criticism by Republicans of running a “tax and spend” administration by producing charts indicating that the rate of increase is smaller than during the tenure of any modern-day governor from either party.
The Fiscal Year 2017 budget request totals $4.1 billion up about 5.2 percent from a year ago.
The proposed Fiscal Year 2017 Recommended Bond and Capital Improvements Act totals $486.9 million and includes $236.1 million in State agency capital projects and $250.8 million in Transportation projects. The governor also set aside $43 million for Grants-in-Aid.
Stung two years ago by a rejection of an increase in the gas tax, the governor steered clear of what seems to be a “third rail – touch it and you die” issue in Delaware political circles. This comes despite fuel prices that have dropped well below $2 a gallon.
“We should all be proud of the tremendous progress we have made in the past few years, but that progress will not continue unless we continue to invest in opportunities for our people – unless we continue to challenge ourselves to build a better budget and make the hard decisions to ensure resources are available to prepare all Delawareans to thrive in today’s economy,” said Markell. “I look forward to another year when we will challenge ourselves to make our state stronger than ever.”
The governor again warned of unsustainable increases in state employee health care costs and proposed a slight increase in worker contributions to health care costs as well as future employees using health savings accounts.
The HSAs are commonplace in private health plans, but typically lead to more out-of-the-pocket expenses for services.
The proposed budget does add more than $30 million to pay for employee health care costs. That figure, combined with higher Medicaid costs, has left little room for new initiatives.
State employees are expected to be unhappy with any talk of kicking in more money to pay for health care, arguing that the health benefits make up for lower-than-average pay and a lack of pay increases in recent years.
State employees represent a powerful voting bloc in a state that has seen private employers like DuPont reduce their headcount by more than 70 percent in the past couple of decades.
Highlights of the budget include the following.
- An increase in public education funding, including: $15.8 million for 188 new teacher units to meet the demands of increased enrollment in public schools and $9.2 million for salary step increases for school employees.
- The budget also continues the state’s commitment to provide access to early learning programs. He proposed $11.3 million in funds.
- In addition, he proposed $6.0 million to support recommendations of the Wilmington Education Improvement Commission to improve opportunities for underserved Wilmington students.
- $4 million will support improvements in educator compensation.
- $10 million for the Delaware Strategic Fund to provide targeted financial assistance to businesses. Recent projects supported through the Delaware Strategic Fund include grants to growing companies such as SevOne, Croda, and Edgewell Personal Care. Companies receiving state grants have exceeded job requirements by 25 percent.
- $15.8 million for infrastructure improvements at the Port of Wilmington.
- $10.7 million for libraries including Duck Creek, Selbyville, Route 9/13 and Harrington, helping set a record for the most library investment of any administration in state history.
- $8.5 million to promote economic activity in designated Downtown Development Districts. Established in Fiscal Year 2015, this program strengthens and enhances downtown areas by subsidizing rehabilitation and construction up to 20 percent of the total project cost. Currently, three downtowns have been designated to receive funding: Wilmington, Dover and Seaford.
- $5.5 million for redevelopment of strategic sites at NVF in Yorklyn and Fort DuPont in Delaware City.
- $3.1 million for the Riverfront Development Corporation.
- $3 million for statewide trails and pathways.
- $1 million for the Fraunhofer Center for Molecular Biotechnology (CMB) Vaccine Development.
- $1.0 million for the Bioscience Center for Advanced Technology.
- Funding is provided for improvements to the 800 MHz communications system, with $6.3 million to support an upgrade of the infrastructure to the national P-25 interoperability standard, while also replacing transmitters, microwave and older end-user portable and mobile radio equipment.
- $500,000 to purchase body cameras for Law Enforcement within the Department of Safety and Homeland Security and to support the Attorney General’s Office in reviewing recordings.
- Further investments in the treatment of substance use disorders, including $2.3 million in funding.
- $1.2 million for Day Program services, providing 20 or more hours of clinically intensive programming per week based on individual treatment plans.
Click on the link below for a presentation on the budget.
http://budget.delaware.gov/budget/fy2017/documents/budget-presentation.pdf
