Sonny Days are Fading Away

I have talked to several people who work for the state of Georgia over the past few weeks who are annoyed, to say the least, about the state's money situation. Governor Sonny Perdue's request for state agencies to cut a minimum of 5% is a tough pill to swallow for a lot of people. The direct impact in most cases is time off without pay, which amounts to a pay cut.

Many state teachers are among those affected. Perdue cut funding that amounted to teachers and public school workers losing three days worth of pay in the fall semester. By many estimates, they may face a similar pay cut during the spring semester as well. The cuts to education are in stark contrast to Governor Perdue's first-term record. During Perdue's re-election bid, I can remember teachers and education were at the top of his agenda. Schools ranked high with economic development. Perdue even went so far as to start a program known on-the-street at "Sonny Money". It was a $100 gift card given to teachers to buy supplies for their classrooms. It was billed as a token of appreciation. No wonder so many educators were disgusted to learn that the program was among the first casualties of the state's attempt to balance the budget.

And more budget cuts are coming to Georgia starting September first. The GBI and Georgia State Patrol are enacting furloughs, up to one day a month for the rest of the year. Yes, law enforcement officers will be furloughed. These two agencies have a tough job just fighting crime, without the current budget issues. These additional limitations only add to the possibility that when we need them, they won't be there. Especially with the GBI, the state may be leaving a huge gap in the number of available officers. Many of the smaller, rural counties rely on the GBI when there's a murder or other major crime. They're role is vital to justice being served, and citizens' protection. No matter. Hopefully our safety isn't compromised.

What's the long term solution? Perhaps permanent cuts. OR maybe the state will need to unload services causing an undue burden on the budget. Who knows? But the way things are going, it just seems more problems are being created than solved. The state's budget is hemmoraging and leaders are using band-aids when they needto perform surgery.