Among the Senate proposals, direct reductions to the budget include cuts of nearly $10 million to higher education, $18 million for stem cell research, $20 million from malpractice insurance subsidies, $10 million in economic development and $5 million to mass transit in the Washington suburbs. Senators might also roll back millions of dollars in subsidies intended to help small businesses pay for more health care coverage, part of a bill that passed in November's special session.
A number of the reductions involve not cuts but changing how programs are funded, either by spreading out the spending on projects over more years or using debt. One such trim includes a $32 million reduction toward financing the Inter-County Connector, a controversial six-lane toll road that would run from Rockville to Laurel. State transportation officials said the cut could mean the $2.2 billion project would ultimately cost more.
Another such cut is a $40 million reduction in the state's $5.5 billion Medicaid budget, proposed by legislative analysts who estimate that some Department of Health and Mental Hygiene reimbursements will cost less than budgeted. Only half of that money comes from state tax revenues. While officials with that agency said it was not unusual for the legislature to make such suggestions, they warned it could result in a deficit by the end of the year.
