BOSTON—House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones, Jr. issued the following statement in response to Governor Patrick’s recent assertion that there was a budget deficit when he assumed office in 2007.Governor Patrick seems to be having a tough time matching his rhetoric to reality lately. His fictitious remark du jour can be clearly refuted with a quick glance at the latest state financial documents put out by the Executive Office for Administration and Finance. It clearly shows that Governor Patrick inherited a $77 million surplus when he was sworn into office in January 2007.
Unfortunately, Governor Patrick became quite the spend thrift and restored more than $380 million in 9C cuts made by former Governor Mitt Romney as one of his first official acts as Governor. Governor Patrick restored these cuts despite strong opposition from his transition team.
The rainy day fund now hovers around $600 million – it’s too bad Governor Patrick felt the need to spend nearly $1.5 billion before the storm blew in.
