Governor Bentley Unveils Road To A Billion Dollars In Savings
By: Stephen Crews
Updated: July 19, 2012
Governor
Robert Bentley on Thursday announced the State of Alabama is on track
to reach one billion dollars in annual savings thanks to extensive
efforts to reduce costs and increase government efficiency.
Governor
Bentley was joined by legislative leadership as he unveiled the state's
Road to a Billion
Dollars in Savings. The long-term savings effort contains a series of
initiatives led by Governor Bentley. Many of these initiatives are
currently in place and involved the dedicated work of Lieutenant
Governor Kay Ivey, House Speaker Mike Hubbard and Senate
President Pro Tem Del Marsh and were approved by the Alabama
Legislature. Moving forward, Governor Bentley and legislative leaders
are committed to building on their collaboration and identifying further
savings to reach the billion-dollar savings goal by
the end of the current term.
"The
bottom line is this: We made a promise to the voters to right-size
Alabama government,
and we're living up to that promise," Governor Bentley said. "During
challenging financial times, taxpayers re-evaluate their own spending
and make adjustments. State government must do the same. That's the
idea behind enacting these savings. Through the
efforts of my office and the support of our legislative leadership, I'm
proud to announce we can achieve a billion dollars in annual savings for
the taxpayers of Alabama."
"A billion
dollars may sound like an aggressive goal, and it is. But here's why we'll reach it: we're already more than halfway there," Governor Bentley added. "In less than
a year-and-a-half, we've already taken action to achieve well over half a billion dollars in annual savings. We're working to
identify
even more savings, and we stand united with legislative leadership in
reaching our goal of saving taxpayers a billion dollars a year."
Based
on fiscal notes and conservative estimates from the Alabama Department
of Finance, Governor
Bentley and legislators have already taken action to realize nearly $675
million in current and projected savings. The total reflects savings
through the following initiatives:
- 2011 Pension Reform Measures: $181.5 million (annual savings)
- 2012 Pension Reform Measures: $164.1 million (average annual savings)
- Workforce Right-Sizing: $181.3 million (annual savings)
- SEIB/PEEHIP Reform: $61.3 million (average annual savings)
- DROP Repeal: $58.5 million (annual savings)
- Indigent Defense Reform: $19.4 million (annual savings)
- Various Bond Refinancings: $8.3 million average per year (Nearly $93 million total over the life of the bonds)
- Total Current and Projected Savings: $674.4 million
- Remaining Goal: $325.6 million
"When
it comes to cutting costs in state government, it's easy to talk the
talk. But these results show our
progress and prove our commitment to an efficient, accountable state
government that maximizes every tax dollar sent to Montgomery," Senate President Pro Tem Del
Marsh said. "Speaker
Hubbard, Lieutenant Governor Ivey and I will continue working with
Governor Bentley to identify and implement innovative solutions to cut
costs and ensure
taxpayers are getting the best possible return on their investment."
"Under his leadership, Governor Bentley has moved state government in the right direction through his efforts
to reduce costs and improve operational efficiencies," Lieutenant Governor Kay Ivey said. "Remarkably,
he
and the leadership of the Alabama Legislature are on track toward a
billion dollars in savings for the hard-working taxpayers of Alabama."
"It is our constant duty to ensure state government is operating as efficiently as possible and that taxpayers
are getting their money's worth," House Speaker Mike Hubbard said. "We
must examine
every dime of state spending, set priorities and, like every Alabama
business and family, make the government live within its means. I wish
our mindset was shared by Washington. We're tightening our belts while
President Obama and tax-and-spend liberals have
piled on trillions in debt. Alabamians can be proud of the conservative
state leaders they've elected and the fiscally responsible course we
are charting for this state."
The savings are part of a long-term effort to right-size Alabama government. The
current
and projected savings benefit both the Education Trust Fund and the
General Fund budgets. While Alabama still faces budget challenges,
these savings have so far helped the state avoid hundreds of millions of
dollars in reductions to essential state
agencies and services. Governor Bentley and legislative leaders are
committed to enacting further savings to build upon these efforts and
make government more efficient.
"Saving
a billion dollars is a goal that's well within our reach," Governor
Bentley said. "By
working together, we'll achieve our goal and deliver on our promise to
the people of Alabama to be good stewards of their hard-earned money and
to run this state as efficiently and effectively as possible."
