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 Incoming Legislature Must Meet Huge Challenges
by Tom Campbell
January 22, 2009
When the gavel sounds at the opening session of the General Assembly of North Carolina Wednesday at noon, the mood may be collegial but somewhat somber. Our state has encountered financial and other problems over the past half century, but none so diverse or so large as we now face.
For starters, there is the state budget deficit which may surpass two billion dollars. Shortfalls in the State Health plan are almost as critical, now estimated at 300 million dollars. Merely stemming the flow of red ink for our budget doesn’t address the more serious problems of a state economy that is slumbering to a halt. Perhaps the largest issue our leaders must tackle is what role government can and should play in putting our people back in jobs and restarting our economy.
For all purposes, state road construction has halted for lack of funds. Our mental health crisis continues to rage, as do major problems with probation, high school dropouts, a failed testing program, and lack of confidence in major state agencies to fix these problems. These are crisis points, but there are also many needs, including our outdated tax codes, a need to consolidate and reform state government, more ethics and open government reforms, along with the need to a top to bottom assessment of what is working and what isn’t in state government.
As our lawmakers come together and reaffirm their oaths to serve the best interests of our state, we hope for the same conviction President Obama sounded in his inaugural address. “The challenges we face are real, they are serious, and they are many,” Obama said. “They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this America. They will be met.”
We want that same resolve from our legislature and new administration. We want to know they understand our problems and are determined to find solutions for them. This is not a time for the timid fearful, partisan or for special interests. Neither is it a time for inaction. Our new president sounded a note of hope backed by determination to meet the tests of these times. We hope to see early signals our new legislature has that same resolve in addressing the challenges facing us. |
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