Ehrlich's Budget Plan May Exceed Guideline

Going Beyond 8.9% Growth Is Reckless, Critics Say

The budget Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. will hand off to legislators tomorrow will propose spending at the fastest clip since at least 2000 -- a year that helped tag his Democratic predecessor with the nickname Parris "Spendening."

For the past month, aides to the Republican governor have informally prepared policymakers for a budget that expands state spending by more than 8.9 percent, outpacing the rate a bipartisan panel of the General Assembly recommended last month.

"Whenever you are breaking out of a recession, there's catch-up," said Chip DiPaula Jr., the governor's chief of staff and former budget secretary. "We've deferred an awful lot. Even the State House needs painting."

DiPaula would not comment on the exact amount of the spending plan, so as not to step on the governor's announcement, saying only, "I don't think anybody should be surprised if the governor's budget exceeds that estimate."

But Ehrlich's critics are surprised. Democratic legislators said the rapid pace of growth is inconsistent with a governor who has accused them of a "cocktail party of overspending" and made fiscal discipline a central theme of his tenure and bid for reelection this year.

For two weeks, Ehrlich has traveled the state to share the good budget news with Maryland residents. With a surplus of more than $1 billion to draw on, his plan includes something for everyone: state employees, seniors, disabled people and college students. He is also offering relief for homeowners facing spiraling tax bills.

Del. Peter Franchot, a Montgomery Democrat and candidate for state comptroller, took issue with what he called Ehrlich's famine-or-feast approach to budgeting. The governor has pledged to increase spending on the state's colleges and universities by 14.5 percent in fiscal 2007 -- after having made cuts in his first two years.

"Stopping the progress of College Park and then coming in for an election year photo op and dumping money on them may be smart campaigning," Franchot said, "but it's terrible governing."

Democrats, who control both houses of the General Assembly, embrace several of the governor's initiatives. But increasing overall spending above 8.9 percent, they said, would be irresponsible when budget forecasters expect the state's underlying mismatch between revenue and spending to reemerge in fiscal 2008.

"He's making friends, but I would say the FCC should look into any campaign ad he runs that identifies him as a fiscal conservative," said Del. Richard S. Madaleno Jr. (D-Montgomery), a former budget committee analyst. "He's breaking the bank for many worthwhile things, but who is going to pick up the pieces in 12 months?"

The way those in the governor's office see it, the spending is possible and responsible because the administration slammed the breaks on the budget and trimmed the size of the bureaucracy after inheriting deep deficits in 2002. Now there are bulging obligations to Medicaid and public schools and a healthy surplus. DiPaula said the governor's budget will also set aside some of that surplus for the next year.

The General Assembly's Spending Affordability Committee has met annually since 1983 to suggest a spending limit based on demands for public services and the state's projected amount of tax revenue. The rate of growth it recommends to the governor is just a guideline.