Issue Position: Truth In Budgeting & Real Fiscal Responsibility

Issue Position

Budget Policy

It's time for a Governor who is honest about what things cost, what Vermonters can afford and the need to reform outdated, inefficient and expensive systems within state government.

A Phil Scott administration will:

Stay laser-focused on the economic and fiscal fundamentals;
Set clear standards and limits that help Vermonters get ahead, instead of causing them to fall further behind; and
Not support, or carry out, experiments at taxpayers' expense.

I will constantly challenge my administration to rethink state government and find ways to make agencies, departments, programs and services more efficient and more productive.

Our goal will be to guarantee every dollar is invested in programs that produce measurable results and to reform or eliminate those that do not.

I will ensure that state government lives within its means, just like working families and small businesses have to do.

Here's my plan:

Establish Economic Growth & Affordability as the TOP Priorities

We need to strengthen our economy and make Vermont more affordable. These goals will be my top priorities and will guide my approach to state budgeting.

I believe the very best and most responsible way to balance the state budget is to generate tax revenue organically, by expanding the economy and increasing the size of our workforce.

Expanding the economy requires focused, fiscally disciplined leadership that sets the right priorities. When it comes to the state budget, that means understanding that we have to make both tough choices and smart investments, and that the state budget must be viewed as a tool for economic growth, not as a device for spending.

Set Limits That Help Families Get Ahead

I believe every state budget should help families get ahead and keep more of what they earn. I will not allow the state budget to grow more than wages or the economy did in the previous year. This will end the practice of funding new spending on the backs of taxpayers.

This is my central, guiding budgetary principle so I want to be clear: A Phil Scott administration will never propose -- and I will never sign -- an annual state budget that grows more than the economy or inflation-adjusted wages did in the prior year.

For example, if the economy only grows at 2 percent this year, growth in the budget I propose for the next fiscal year will be limited to less than 2 percent. If the economy and wages are flat, then the following year's budget will be level-funded or reduced. If the economy contracts, state government will have to find more efficiencies and further reduce costs and spending.

Other candidates have suggested we should limit state budget growth to 2 percent each year, or have no limits at all. An arbitrary 2 percent limit is an inadequate solution for years when economic growth and inflation-adjusted wage growth do not reach 2 percent. The unfortunate reality is that those years have been very common.

Those candidates who will not commit to limiting spending growth are effectively preserving the state government's ability to spend beyond taxpayers' means. This undisciplined approach to budgeting is why Vermont families face a crisis of affordability in the first place.

Enough is enough. It's time to restore fiscal discipline in state government.

Require a 90-Day Annual Session

I believe in a truly citizen Legislature with Vermonters from all walks of life participating and offering their perspectives. Unfortunately, the long and unpredictable length of the sessions discourages everyday folks from running. A 90-day session would set clear parameters that would encourage more working Vermonters to run and to serve.

In addition to encouraging more Vermonters to serve, this commonsense approach will help get us back on track with legislative sessions that are intensive and disciplined about addressing key fiscal and operational needs.

As Governor, I'll work closely with the Legislature to establish clear priorities so we can get that the most critical and impactful legislative work done in 90-days. You can view my full proposal HERE.

Establish a 2-Year Budget Cycle

I will also shift the state from its current 12-month budget to a 24-month budget cycle, and propose the Legislature join me in making it law. Requiring the state to build and manage to a 2-year budget would impose more fiscal discipline on spending, strengthen long-term planning and give us the foundation we need to modernize government in ways that lower operational costs. Biennial budgeting can also reduce the time and cost of the budgeting process itself. You can view my full proposal HERE.

Prioritize Investments in People

In the last six years, we've lost nearly 16,000 workers from our workforce, representing about $750 million in potential wages. As the workforce gets smaller, the tax burden gets larger for those who remain. This trend is putting increased pressure on families and businesses, furtherer weakening our economy. It is an unsustainable downward economic cycle that we must reverse in order to stabilize the state budget and be better positioned to invest in pro-growth initiatives.

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