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Patrick files updated budget that includes cuts to dental care for the poor

E-mail|Link|Comments () June 4, 2009 08:10 PM

By Matt Viser, Globe Staff

Governor Deval Patrick filed an updated budget proposal this afternoon that would cut nearly $800 million from the initial proposal he filed in January, including the elimination of adult dental benefits under state Medicaid plans.

Removing that benefit, which comes through the state's MassHealth program, would save the state $164 million but would leave 600,000 residents without vital dental care, including exams, cleanings, and root canals.

Patrick’s revised budget proposal does not include money from a sales tax hike that House and Senate lawmakers have approved with veto-proof margins, prolonging the conflict with the Legislature over whether to raise broad-based taxes to plug some of the state revenue shortfalls.

Patrick has maintained that he would veto the proposal unless lawmakers first approve reforms to the states’ ethics, pension, and transportation laws.

Patrick also includes in his proposal several other targeted tax plans – such as increasing taxes on soda and candy – that have been largely ignored by the Legislature.

“We believe our proposals still have merit,” Secretary of Administration and Finance Leslie Kirwan said in a briefing for reporters.

The plan preserves current levels of education local aid, but recommends a further reduction of $80 million in non-education local aid.

It also doesn’t include any funding for the Quinn Bill, a controversial program that protects pay bonuses for police officers who hold college degrees. The House also initially eliminated funding but later voted to restore about $25 million, about half of what is being spent on the program this year. The Senate approved $10 million for the program.

House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo and Senate President Therese Murray declined to comment this afternoon on Patrick's revised proposal, which comes about two weeks later than required.

There has been increasing tension with Patrick recently, particularly over the governor's threat to veto the Legislature's plan to hike the state's 5 percent sales tax to 6.25 percent.

A committee of House and Senate lawmakers are planning to start going over differences in their plans on Friday. They hope to come to agreement over the next few weeks, sending the proposal to Patrick’s desk. The new fiscal year begins on July 1.

Patrick today also proposed increasing state employee insurance contributions by 5 percentage points, which would save the state $26 million more than originally proposed but would increase health care costs for state employees.

State revenues have plummeted in recent months, and the revenue estimates that the governor and House lawmakers originally built their budgets on have since been revised.

Patrick, who submitted his original budget proposal in January, was relying on an estimate that the state would receive $19.5 billion next year. The House, Senate, and governor agreed last month to lower that estimate to $18 billion.

Patrick’s new proposal for a $26.9 billion budget (which also includes federal and other monies) is more than $1 billion less than his original proposal that was filed in January.

“I remain committed to protecting key programs like education and health care, and will continue to responsibly manage the state’s finances so that Massachusetts emerges from this downturn stronger than before,” Patrick said in a statement.

Matt Viser can be reached at maviser@globe.com.