Senate GOP Responds to Hearing Request

Minority Leader Allan H. Kittleman and Minority Whip Nancy Jacobs delivered a letter to Senator Ulysses Currie, Chairman of the Budget and Taxation Committee, yesterday declining an invitation to participate in a "special hearing" scheduled solely for the Republican caucus to propose budget cuts. In response, Senate President Thomas V. "Mike" Miller announced in the Senate Chamber today that the February 23rd hearing will be open to all legislators regardless of party affiliation to present ideas to the budget committees on how to reduce state spending.

In spite of the blizzard confronting Maryland residents today, the Senate met in session at 10:00 a.m. this morning. At the conclusion of the session President Miller and Minority Leader Kittleman discussed the response from the Republican Caucus. Miller said, "the purpose of this hearing is to give everybody an opportunity to tell these committees how they want to cut the budget . . . so any individual member who is not on the Budget & Taxation Committee, that wants to can come and say to the body this is where the Governor’s funding needs to be cut.  Remember we can’t add stuff to the budget, we can only cut the Governor’s budget." 

To listen to the Senate session, click here and select "Listen to Prior Senate Proceedings - Wednesday, February 10, 2010, Session #1" and advance to 28:54 of the recording. 

In the letter of response, the Senate GOP leadership stressed their concerns that the "special hearing" created an aberration in the normal committee budget process. They stressed that Republican members would be proposing specific budget reductions as part of the normal committee deliberation, especially through the work of  Senators Donald F. Munson, J.Lowell Stoltzfus, David R. Brinkley and George C. Edwards, the Republican members of the Budget and Taxation Committee. For the full text of the Senate Republican Caucus letter - click here.