Gov. John Hoeven (R) is one of the few state leaders around the country with a budget surplus. In his Jan. 6 state of the state speech, he called for boosting spending on local schools, state colleges and universities, child-care subsidies and the health insurance program for children from low income families.
Hoeven, who won a third four- year term as governor last fall, also asked lawmakers in the Republican-controlled Legislature to approve tax cuts he proposed during the campaign: $100 million for an income tax cut and $300 million to trim property tax rates in the state’s school districts.
Even after increasing total state spending by 19 percent over two years, Hoeven said his $7.7 billion budget plan still would have an $800 million reserve in two years. North Dakota has not been hit as hard as other states by the recession because of revenues from its oil and natural gas production, and because the state did not have many loans affected by the subprime mortgage crisis.
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