More Buyouts Offered to State Employees

July 7, 2018 T. Arthur Mason North Dakota
North Dakota State Capitol

In April Governor Doug Burgum called for more cuts in the budgets of state agencies. Though it’s needed – and I wrote that we should cut deeper – it’s only expected that some folks don’t agree with such limited government thinking and fiscal responsibility.

Such is the case with Senate Minority Leader Joan Heckaman who, upon finding out that state agencies are being offered another round of buyouts, expressed her feelings to The Forum that:

“It bothers me because when we do that, we’re losing some of our workers who have experience.”

Such sentiment is a poor reason to keep employees that we cannot afford— with some of them in departments I would argue that we don’t need. But the Senate’s leading Democrat also thinks agencies are down to the “bare bones” as well. So, such thinking shouldn’t surprise us.

The coming 2019 Legislative Session is shaping up to be a battle. After cutting the General Fund budget in 2017 by more than 28 percent – and raiding reserve funds to the tune of nearly $800 million to do it – there’s little question that the idea of cutting more is going to send some legislators into a tizzy. Which is one reason the Legacy Fund is already being eyed as a reason to keep on spending.

We need more cuts. Do we have enough legislators with the courage to make them?

 

Sources:

  1. https://www.wday.com/news/government-and-politics/4433529-reduced-reserves-burgum-calls-cuts-state-agency-budgets
  2. https://theminutemanblog.com/2018/04/18/cmon-governor-burgum-can-cut-deeper/
  3. http://www.inforum.com/news/government-and-politics/4466908-nd-agencies-offer-another-round-buyouts
  4. https://theminutemanblog.com/2017/08/07/save-the-taxpayer-start-eliminating-state-agencies/
  5. https://theminutemanblog.com/2017/04/29/the-budget-nd-watchdog-network-warns-no-room-for-error/
  6. https://theminutemanblog.com/2018/07/03/legacy-fund-an-excuse-for-spending/
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About T. Arthur Mason 883 Articles
T. Arthur Mason is a native North Dakotan who has spent nearly all of his life in the Peace Garden State. As the third of four children in Western North Dakota, Mason grew to appreciate family and the outdoors. Some of his fondest memories are annual deer hunts with family and friends. In his early teenage years, faith became a central part of T. Arthur Mason's life. He and the majority of his family attend church together on a weekly basis and find this a fulfilling aspect of their lives. Through the influence of his father, T. Arthur Mason became intrigued with politics. As a boy, he attended political events with his father and enjoyed the friendships that resulted as a byproduct of those political associations. As Mason grew older, he became convinced that the quote often attributed to Thomas Jefferson was true, "That government is best which governs least." Today, T. Arthur Mason enjoys time with his wife and children, an occasional hunt, and an increasingly active life on the political scene. This blog is the fulfillment of a dream to design a web site in the realm of politics and to advocate for the principles of Liberty and constitutionally limited government. On behalf of all those that contribute to The Minuteman, we hope you enjoy your time on the site and will share the message with others.

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