April 1 means the traditional first day of trout season – and it also means time for a state budget.

The state senate has already passed a $120.6 billion 2007-08 state budget that redirects one billion dollars in spending proposed by the governor to achieve the senate's commitment to reject new taxes and provide tax relief, prevent devastating health care cuts, provide a fair aid distribution to all school districts, invest in job creation and make college more affordable.

Education, health care, tax relief, jobs these have been the Senate’s priorities all along because they are our constituents’ priorities. We have heard a clear and consistent message from the people that they don’t want money cut from their local hospitals, they don’t want their school district shortchanged on state aid, they want greater property tax relief and they want a stronger economy. The senate budget delivers on all these issues and more.

We are moving forward with a public process to resolve the differences between the budgets proposed by the senate and assembly and as long as everyone involved is open and willing to negotiate and compromise, there is no reason we can’t have a budget in place before April 1.

Highlights of the senate’s proposed 2007-08 budget:

Rejects new taxes and fees. Rejects more than $800 million in new and increased taxes and fees this year, growing to over $2 billion next year, including tax increases on hospitals, nursing homes and financial services.

Provides property tax relief. Provides $2.6 billion in property tax relief that would triple the size of direct tax rebate checks to all homeowners, growing to $3.4 billion next year.

Provides tax relief to business to create jobs. The senate plan cuts taxes for small businesses ––which the governor left out of his budget. We offer more than $723 million in business tax relief this year to create new jobs, growing to more than $1.8 billion next year.

> Business tax cuts include:

– eliminating income and corporate franchise taxes on manufacturing;