Rubio eyes leaner gov't amid budget gloom

House Speaker Marco Rubio hadn't had a chance to fully review Gov. Crist's proposed education budget, but he told the Buzz earlier today that, "Obviously they are suggestions but they are something we will take very seriously."

But Rubio knows that increased spending is tough to imagine in the current budget climate. Where some seem doom and gloom, the faithful conservative sees opportunity.

"There’s no doubt this is a year of tough decisions. And I hope we will make the tough decisions this year. Because that's how we can capitalize on the future. We need to get government back to where it needs to be, get back to having a government that’s the proper size based on what people can afford. If we do the right things this year, then we’ll be set up for success."

Comments

Let's just dump more essential services on local governments and blame them when they have to raise taxes.

i cana't wait until he starts naming programs. Oh wait, he already did, but it was a program that didn't exist. Then he blamed it on staff for his error. Nice.

"We need to get government back to where it needs to be, get back to having a government that’s the proper size based on what people can afford."
''''''''''''''''''''''''''

Speaker Rubio,

And just how do you quantify and qualify that?

What is the "proper size"?

Are you Mr. Know It All?

Hey, let's use local property taxes to raise education spending, grab some headlines and then blame locals for raising property taxes. Yeah, that's the ticket!

[terminator]

how about we just get rid of DOE?

It's packed with leftover Jeb staffers who got dumped in Tallahassee since they had no future job prospects and career bureaucrats who have worked under six different commissioners and perform no useful service to students, teachers and schools.

That would save a few billion a year and no one would even notice the white elephant was gone.

Terminator, the Florida Dept. of FCAT Compliance is an essential government agency.

All learning would grind to a halt without it.

I heard Charlie was going to recommend a 10 percent raise for state employees, along with 20 percent increases to corrections, juvenile justice, health and children and family issues... without raising taxes.

He will then blame the legislature for not going along with his recommendations.

A Constitutional change to move to a unicameral legislature could save us salaries, travel, staff and get rid of the Speaker. We could eliminate 120 representatives, at least 400 staffers including a half dozen Rubio staffers making over $100,000, all that travel and per diem and eliminate all of those wasteful special sessions. I think he should start there. I would vote for that one in a heartbeat. It would also save local governments millions in costs for special elections every time a Republican House member finds a better position to jump into during the middle of a term.

Whoa, 8:02. Now you're messing with the wrong special interest.

Rubio's not the only one with high paid help, what about agencies creating new unncessary positions for buddies.

Time to cut spending & salaries and cut property taxes.

Salaries & pensions have gone up the most in last 6 years.

I have a better idea. Lets get more and more people to move here from high tax states and demand all the services they had up North. Then we can cut all the taxes and get everything we want for free because we passed an amendment that says we can.

Well certainly the salaries of the senior management have increased in the last 8 years - but for those who actually do the work - they are the least paid in the nation and the members earn more in 60 days than the average state worker earns in an entire year (plus the members and senior managment get free health insurance for themselves and their families while career service has to pay).

Many state workers are paid so little that their children qualify for KidCare - but are ineligible because they have a parent who works for the state. So this tax supported program excludes taxpayers who work for the government but permits the working poor in any other job to obtain health care for their children.

By the way, next time you discover that the healh care assistant in the nursing home where your family member resides is a convicted felon - thank Jeb and Rubio and Pruitt and Charlie - the agency that investigates such things can't afford to do so.

And when you discover that the chinese restaurant is recycling the leftovers from someone else's plate back into the pot - don't call a state agency take care of it yourself - because the fees that were collected from restaurants to fund investigators and prosecutors is routinely raided by the legislature so they can fund their special projects.

And while the Legislature is calling for cutting state government expenses remember that Rubio continues to hire his friends at $10,000 a month, that Pruitt spent $24,000 last year alone to fly on the state jet (rather than drive or fly commercial like ordinary people do) and that Crist spent over $70,000 for a fuel cell at the mansion so he can keep the ac turned low!

Plenty of money for the "let them eat cake" crowd.

Or you could just implement the Fovernment Effeciency Task Force that was required by the passage of Amendment 1 on the 2006 ballot!! You put the right people in charge of that mission and you will uncover a lot of wasteful spending!!!

The biggest waste of taxpayer's money are all these tax intitiative being foisted upon us by GOP politicians. Quit trying to use us to satisfy your promises to the realors and developers. And most of all, quit trying to tell us it's for our own benefit.

Rubio: The anti-Christ for Florida's future.