ANNAPOLIS – The Maryland Senate began to take bites out of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich’s budget Wednesday, recommending reductions in proposed spending for stem cell research, scholarships and a pay raise for correctional officers.
In all, the Senate proposed cuts of $212 million from the governor’s $29 billion budget, as it considered nearly 250 amendments, most of them offered by the Budget and Taxation Committee.
Sen. Ulysses Currie, D – Prince George’s, the committee chairman, called the revised budget “both balanced and within the limits recommended by the Spending Affordability Committee.”
But Henry P. Fawell, a spokesman for the governor, said the administration was disappointed in what he called the “deep and painful cuts” made to the Ehrlich budget.
Nearly all the amendments passed without debate. The handful of roll call votes broke down largely on partisan lines, with majority Democrats making cuts to the Republican governor’s spending plan.
One amendment that did provoke debate was a $15 million reduction in pay raises for correctional officers.
Sen. James E. DeGrange, Sr., D – Anne Arundel, defended the cut, saying he was unaware of any other retroactive pay increases like the one proposed for correctional officers by Ehrlich.
“We felt very strongly that we didn’t want to open this door,” DeGrange said .
Sen. John J. Hafer, R – Western Maryland, said the pay increase was needed to boost morale among prison staffs.
“When you say that this is unprecedented, so is the mess that’s going on in prisons,” Hafer said. “When you have that kind of condition, you ought to be doing something to ameliorate it.”
Despite Hafer’s objections, the amendment was approved by a vote of 34-13.
Also included was an amendment to freeze tuition for the University System of Maryland.
The freeze would remove nearly $19 million that was included in Ehrlich’s budget, though the cost is expected to be offset by a healthcare overbudget of nearly the same amount.
Now that the amendments have been approved, the Senate will have a final vote on the budget Friday.
The House is still considering the budget in committee. Changes to the budget are expected to be introduced in the House next Wednesday. The House will vote on the budget next Friday.
Fawell said Ehrlich was particularly unhappy with a $5 million reduction in funding for college scholarships and the reduction of funding for stem cell research from $20 million to $10 million dollars. “These are senators who claim to support healthcare and education and the environment,” Fawell said. “Unfortunately, their actions speak louder than their words.”