credit to finance many non-State-owned products. As a matter of fact,
nearly two-thirds of the State debt created during die past five years
has been used for such projects. Fiscal experts look with disfavor
upon such use of the State's credit, and, in order to preserve our
present debt soundness, I would urge that you exercise great restraint
in this practice.
This, then, is my plan for financing our State Government for
another year—a plan I am offering for your consideration and
judgment. In this budget for fiscal 1964, as in all the others I have
submitted, I have tried, as I have stated before, to combine sound
fiscal policy with the prudent management of all public funds. It is,
as you have seen, larger than the budgets of previous years, but it
should be pointed out that for the most part the increased appropria-
tions represent not new undertakings but instead are funds required
for the normal expansion of services in a growing, progressive State.
In examining requests for appropriations, every effort was made to
eliminate waste and extravagance and to reduce expenditures to
essentials.
To summarize, the budget I am presenting to you represents my
best judgment of a sound financial program and my best effort to
balance the requirements of the people with their ability to pay for
services.
And now finally, let me say that I am grateful to you for the
courtesies I have received here today and that I am looking forward
with pleasure to working with you, on finances and other State
problems, during the remaining days of this session.
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