Governor Vetoes $573 Million from $25.7 Billion FY 2007 Budget

Governor Mitt Romney signed a $25.249 billion FY 2007 budget, boosting spending by 5.6% over last year, and vetoed $573 million from the spending plan approved by the legislature late June 30. The budget will deliver an additional $63.2 million for higher education, a 6.9% increase over last year; $216 million for K-12 public education, a 6.5% increase; $375 million more for local aid, an 8.5% increase; and $14 million more for the environment, a 7.4% increase.

The governor’s vetoes, however, were deep and far-reaching, axing $114 million for hospitals and community health centers, $112 million in what he labeled “pet projects,” $31 million for the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, and $25 million in rate relief for the 2.5 million customers served by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, which would add an additional $20 to ratepayers’ bills. The governor said he issued his vetoes to prevent the legislature from taking $550 million out of the state’s $1.7 billion stabilization fund, a reduction he said would leave the state vulnerable to future downturns in the economy. He also said the total increase in spending proposed by the legislature, 7.5%, was excessive and that a 5.6% increase over the previous fiscal year was more fiscally prudent.

Last year, the governor vetoed $109 million from the approved budget; the legislature overrode $108 million of those cuts. (AP, July 8/Boston Globe, July 9, 2006) (HMF/7/14/06)