Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Group calls for state to cut $800M

Mark Hornbeck / Detroit News Lansing Bureau

Michigan government should slash inmate sentences, curb health care programs for the poor, and cut benefits for teachers and state workers in the interest of saving taxpayers $800 million over the next decade, says a Detroit Renaissance report released Monday.

The state budget deficit will continue to spiral -- to nearly $10 billion by 2017 -- unless spending reductions like these are enacted, according to the

More information Proposed budget cuts Detroit Renaissance released a report on state budget reform Monday that calls for: Changing prison incarceration policies to reduce the number and average length of stay of inmates. Some 16,000 inmates remain in prison past their earliest release date. The state's incarceration rate and length of time in lockup far exceeds those of other Great Lakes states. The state should also look at privatizing food delivery and other services in prisons. Cutting some of the 1.8 million recipients from Medicaid rolls by eliminating eligibility for certain optional groups, such as relatives who care for Medicaid-eligible children. The state should also consider cutting payments to health care providers, increasing co-pays for recipients and cutting some services such as podiatric, chiropractic and hearing aids. Putting in place tougher eligibility requirements and reducing retirement benefits for newly hired teachers; also switch to a 401(k) retirement plan for new hires. Reducing health care benefits and increasing health coverage premiums for state employees.

 private, nonprofit leadership group.

"These actions are needed to restore the state's fiscal health over the next decade and lay the foundation for future economic prosperity," said Doug Rothwell, president of Detroit Renaissance.

Most of the proposed cuts have been debated in the state capital for years, but lawmakers and the governor have failed to strike agreement due to policy and political differences.

For example, Gov. Jennifer Granholm has pushed for allowing some nonviolent offenders and elderly inmates out of prison, but those changes have been opposed by Republican legislators who don't want to soften the state's stance on deterring crime and punishing offenders.

Some Republican lawmakers have sought reductions in Medicaid health care for the poor, but Granholm has opposed most of them saying the state should not cut programs for its most vulnerable citizens, especially during a down economy.

Liz Boyd, spokeswoman for Granholm, said of the report: "(It) raises questions that have been both asked and answered by the Granholm administration. We've proposed corrections reform. State employees and retirees are paying more for their health care. The governor has said she could support 401(k) plans for new teachers.

"And our Medicaid program is one of the most efficient in the nation, because over a million of our beneficiaries are in managed care."

State Sen. Nancy Cassis, R-Novi, said: "We have got to find savings and really begin to control spending if we are to set this economy back on the right track. I welcome suggestions from Detroit Renaissance and others. It's time now to go about cost containment in a practical way."

The 20-page report, submitted to the governor and legislative leaders, was written for Detroit Renaissance by Public Sector Consultants Inc., a nonpartisan public policy think tank based in Lansing.

You can reach Mark Hornbeck at (313) 222-2470 or mhornbeck@detnews.com.