(Host) With just under two weeks to go before the primary election, the race for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination is getting more intense – and more personal.
At a campaign debate sponsored by The Burlington Free Press, the five candidates clashed over tax policy and the Challenges for Change budget law.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel reports.
(Kinzel) While the five candidates agree on many issues, they do disagree on some key topics, including tax policy and the state budget.
During the legislative session, Chittenden Senator Doug Racine urged his colleagues to look at tapping into the state’s Rainy Day fund to offset painful budget cuts. And he asked them to consider using a budget deficit approach taken by Republican Governor Dick Snelling in the early 1990s.
That approach was a combination of temporary tax increases and budget cuts.
At the Free Press candidates forum, Racine said he doesn’t favor tax increases at this time. That response drew a swift reply from Windham Senator Peter Shumlin.
During Racine’s unsuccessful run for governor in 2002, then Republican candidate Jim Douglas accused Racine of "flip flopping" on a number of key issues. That charge was the centerpiece of a TV ad campaign. Shumlin raised the same concern during this debate.
(Shumlin) "I’m just having flashbacks to the race for governor eight years ago, where we lost that race. And I think we lost the race because we weren’t consistent …and I think we need a candidate who’s consistent on taxes. I’m not changing my mind from three months ago or six or 12. I’m clear."
(Kinzel) Racine strongly denied the charge.
(Racine) "It is not a shift. If we end up in a crisis where we cannot cut anymore, I think we’re pretty close to it, then you have to resort to those sorts of broad-based temporary tax increases. I’m not afraid of saying that. But I don’t think that’s where we are right now."
(Kinzel) The candidates also fought over the Challenges for Change law. It’s a plan that’s designed to save more than $35 million in state spending by establishing performance standards and outcomes for many programs.
Former Windsor Senator Matt Dunne said it’s little more than an effort to cut key programs.
(Dunne) "There was a concern that in fact that it was just a stalking horse, regardless of the good intentions of the Legislature, that is was stalking horse for the administration to exact additional cuts and do harm to our economic development and social safety nets."
(Kinzel) Secretary of State Deb Markowitz was also very critical of the new law.
(Markowitz) "I think the Challenges for Change process shows how broken the system is right now in Montpelier. What we’re seeing is top-down decisions from Montpelier that apply a one-size-fits-all solution to a state with real regional differences."
(Kinzel) Senate Appropriations Chairwoman Susan Bartlett admitted that there were some problems in the drafting process for the bill. But she said the goals are very important.
(Bartlett) "Then you say, ‘This is how much money we have to spend.’ And you allocate the resources to the programs that are getting you to the outcomes that you have agreed on."
(Kinzel) Bartlett says the Challenges for Change law will help the state meet some of its most important budget priorities in the coming years.
For VPR News, I’m Bob Kinzel in Montpelier.