At 08:00 PM 7/29/2009, you wrote:
>I moved here and the illegal alien problem doesn't seem to be a
>problem. I had forgotten about it! Almost everyone here is an alien
>of some sort (legal or not).
Perhaps you are looking at the wrong source.....we now have a $3
Billion deficit.....check out these numbers in bold blue.........
<
http://www.examiner.com/x-16231-Maricopa-County-Conservative-Examiner>Maricopa
County Conservative Examiner
AP-Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer
Arizona Governor Jan Brewer issued a
<
http://azgovernor.gov/dms/upload/PS_Governor%20Brewer_072709.pdf>press
release on Monday, July 27th indicating that she intends to leave the
calendar for the week of July 27th through August 2nd, "open for
budget meetings with the Arizona legislature."
The state is facing a significant
<
http://www.examiner.com/x-16231-Maricopa-County-Conservative-Examiner%7Ey2009m7d8-Governor-Brewer-signs-10-billion-dollar-budget>financial
crisis that has resulted in a 2 billion dollar shortfall after the
Governor rejected a balanced budget passed by lawmakers that she
said, "cut too deeply from critical state services such as K-12
education and health care for the poor." The Governor called a
special session that began on July 6th, but it has proven
unproductive since many lawmakers were attending conferences and
events hosted by lobbyists back east, away from the hot weather and
hotter budget issue.
Currently, the Governor has provided the legislature with a blueprint
for
<
http://www.azgovernor.gov/documents/AZBudget/2010/Sources-and-Uses.pdf>closing
the revenue gap that includes an odd assortment of tax increases and
other unusual measures. Among the proposals is the sale and lease
back of government owned buildings and prisons, as well as borrowing
against future lottery income. Critics contend that this is a short
sighted approach to the budget, since the leases on the buildings
will become an expense, and vital future lottery revenue will be
unavailable, committed instead to this year's budget.
Particularly troubling are the proposed tax increases during what is
arguably the worst recession the state has ever faced. The Governor's
tax plan includes a one cent increase in the sales tax, which
translates into a
<
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0730ahcccs30.html?&wired>$438
a year cost to the average family. Allowing the state equalization
tax rollback to expire will place an additional $58 per year property
tax burden on an owner of a $270,000 home. These increases are in
addition to the reduction in services such as the 220 million cut to
the K-12 education system and the 40 million cut to the state
University system.
Interestingly, there is no mention of curtailing the cost of illegal
immigration in any state budget plan.
<
http://www.fairus.org/site/PageServer?pagename=iic_immigrationissuecenters5e3f>A
2004 study places the cost of educating the children of Arizona
illegal aliens at 820 million annually. The uncompensated medical
expenses are estimated to be 400 million, and the cost to incarcerate
illegal alien prisoners is 80 million annually. Even accounting for a
positive economic impact of 257 million, the price tag for Arizonans
to subsidize the illegal population is almost 1 billion every year.
The illegal immigration problem accounts for nearly half of the
entire budget deficit. The savings would be enough to completely
eliminate the need for a sales tax increase, or in the alternative,
restore all of the operating budget reductions for 2010.
These are not theoretical numbers. Next year, Arizonans will have
less for themselves and their families, and the quality of their
children's education will be degraded. Services for the states poor
will also be lessened in order to support the illegal alien community.
One can only hope that lawmakers use of tax dollars mirrors their
constituents' priorities, and that Arizona families approve of paying
more in taxes and receiving less in services for the benefit of illegal aliens.
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