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October 25, 2006 | South Carolina Headlines

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Gov. Sanford: State Can Afford to Restore More Trust Fund Money
PRESS RELEASE
May 3, 2005

ADDITIONAL $127 MILLION CAN GO TO REPAYMENT & STILL FUND EDUCATION, HEALTH CARE & LAW ENFORCEMENT

Columbia, S.C. - May 3, 2005 - Gov. Mark Sanford visited a Columbia tire store and gas station today to highlight several real-world examples of the importance of restoring money taken from trust and reserve funds before engaging in new spending. With nearly $700 million in new revenue coming into state government in this coming fiscal year alone, Gov. Sanford's Executive Budget and subsequent proposals call for $362 million to go toward trust and reserve fund repayment. The budget moving through the General Assembly currently allocates just $117 million, with the rest designated for new spending.

"We can fund education, health care and law enforcement at the same levels the General Assembly did and still have $127 million to allocate toward additional trust and reserve fund repayment, on top of the $117 million the Legislature has currently set aside," Gov. Sanford said. "That's $244 million that could go toward settling old debts and getting our state's fiscal house in order while still funding critical needs like education, health care and law enforcement at the same levels the General Assembly did."  

Gov. Sanford highlighted the roughly $1 million still owed to a DHEC trust fund established to provide clean-up assistance to gas stations in the event an underground tank leaks. Taxpayers currently pay a half cent fee on every gallon of petroleum entering South Carolina, supposedly to cover this cost. The governor also pointed to the $2 million owed to the Waste Tire Grant Trust Fund, established to fund research on solid waste management and establish waste reduction and recycling education programs. Taxpayers pay for these environmental programs, which are supposed to be funded from the state's $2.00 new tire fee.

"My bottom line is we need to either restore this money to the places it's supposed to go or give it back to the taxpayers," Gov. Sanford said. "The people who fund this government are being told one thing while government does something different. They're being told that the fees they pay on gasoline, on new tires or on their phone bill for calls to 9-1-1 service are going to specific things, but in fact they're not. That money is instead going to things like horse trails at a State Park or tomb restoration at Francis Marion. We owe it to the taxpayers to be transparent. We need to either repay the money that's been taken from these trust funds or give it back to them."  

-#####-

Will Folks
Press Secretary, Governor Mark Sanford
803-734-5258 (office)
803-734-6447 (facsimile)
803-446-6713 (mobile)
[email protected]
www.scgovernor.com



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