LANSING - In her weekly radio address, Governor Jennifer M. Granholm today said that her budget recommendation presented this week is a combination of spending cuts and government reforms necessary to address both the on-going structural deficit in Michigan's budget and the cyclical challenges caused by the national recession.

"The cuts and reforms I proposed are painful but they are critical to helping us weather this economic storm and allowing us to invest in the things that matter most during challenging times…creating jobs, training and educating our citizens for those jobs and protecting our families," Granholm said.

The governor emphasized that she is committed to protecting Michigan families and that her proposed budget does not cut a single person off health care, continues to make improvements in the state's unemployment insurance system, and continues to invest in job creation and job training through the 21st Century Jobs Fund and the No Worker Left Behind program.

Granholm said in order to cope with the state's challenge of providing needed services with less revenue, her proposed budget builds on the $134 million in spending cuts that were made in December.  The governor added that she recommends another $670 million in spending reductions and additional government reforms including the elimination of the Department of History, Arts and Libraries and support for the two State Fairs.

"My proposed combination of spending cuts and government reforms may not be popular, but they are necessary to address both the on-going structural deficit in Michigan's budget and the cyclical challenges caused by the national recession."

The governor's weekly radio address is released each Friday morning and may be heard on broadcast stations across the state.  The address is available on the governor's Web site at (www.michigan.gov/gov) for download, together with a clip of the quote above.  The radio address is also available as a podcast on the Web site, as well as on iTunes and vi2a RSS feed for general distribution to personal MP3 players and home computers.  Links to the audio files and text of today's address follow.

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Governor Jennifer M. Granholm
Radio Address - 2009 Budget

Full:  http://www.michigan.gov/documents/gov/Gov184_Full_267199_7.mp3
Edited:  http://www.michigan.gov/documents/gov/Gov184_Edit_267200_7.mp3
Quote:  http://www.michigan.gov/documents/gov/Gov184_Quote_267201_7.mp3

This is Governor Jennifer Granholm.

This week I delivered my budget recommendation to state lawmakers for their consideration. My recommendation builds on the fact that our economy in Michigan is severely challenged and things are  likely to get worse before they  get better.

But we're committed to fighting for citizens who are hurting the most during this economic crisis and that's why my proposed budget does not cut a single person off of health care.

The budget recommendations continue to make improvements in our unemployment insurance system to make sure families get the help that they need.  My budget also continues to invest in job creation and job training through our 21st Century Jobs Fund, No Worker Left Behind and funding for community colleges, which play a critical role in training.

To cope with the state's challenge of having to provide needed services with less revenue, my proposed budget builds on the $134 million in spending cuts that I made in December and recommends another $670 million in spending reductions and additional government reforms including the elimination of the Department of History, Arts and Libraries and the elimination of state support for our two State Fairs.

 In addition I have asked Lt. Governor Cherry to lead a comprehensive effort to modernize state government that will reduce costs while still maintaining our quality of life.

The cuts and reforms I proposed are painful but they are critical to helping us weather this economic storm and allowing us to invest in the things that matter most during challenging times…creating jobs, training and educating our citizens for those jobs and protecting our families.

And although the anticipated federal economic recovery package will provide needed assistance to maintain critical services, my budget recommendation includes the spending cuts and additional efficiencies that are required to ensure we can live within our means once that stimulus funding is gone.

Make no mistake, Michigan welcomes federal action to stimulate our economy and create jobs.  We're well positioned to capitalize on the opportunities it'll provide, partly because we have made tough budget choices in the past.

My proposed combination of spending cuts and government reforms may not be popular, but they are necessary to address both the on-going structural deficit in Michigan's budget and the cyclical challenges caused by the national recession.

We must continue to cut, reform, modernize, and downsize.

By prioritizing wisely, reforming aggressively and investing judiciously, government can help struggling citizens and jumpstart the economy.

Thank you for listening.

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