86 ADDRESSES AND STATE PAPERS

A. I don't know enough about it to voice an opinion, Max. I've got
to say this, that I'm extremely leery of the extension of public subsidies
into private areas unless there is an extremely well-documented crisis
to meet. There is no way to stop these extensions, and when the public
payroll is approaching levels that it presently approaches, where we're
having difficulty even meeting our needs, I don't want to open up these
new avenues unless there is an extremely vital necessity for going into
such a program. And let me just say this in regard to the budget and
in regard to the supplemental budget: I'm greatly concerned about
reports I have been hearing that there may be a tendency on the part
of certain members of the Legislature to advocate the removal of the
pay-as-you-go funds from this budget. There is 10 million dollars as
a down payment for capital improvements. If this money is removed
for the political expedient of making the Legislature look good, by
cutting the budget, it will do irreparable harm to our fiscal position.
It will put us in a position where we will later have to pay back
4 dollars for every 3 dollars borrowed, and to my mind it will repre-
sent an irresponsible move on the part of the Legislature. I strongly
urge the leadership to take immediate action to prevent the frivolous
deletion of this needed down payment on capital improvement. At a
time when we're faced with supplemental budgets which we hope to
have in the early part of next week, at a time when we're faced with
the need to extend this 52 million dollars of capital budgeting, it
seems to me that we have got to establish a precedent of being willing
to pay something down on the money we're spending. We can not
leave it as a reduction and leave it as the obligation of future genera-
tions.

Q. Governor, on that 10 million dollar pay-as-you-go plan, don't you
think they are acting more against the philosophy than the money
itself, by going back to the old system of keeping the lid on 50
thousand dollars?

A. Well I don't know what their purpose is, but I just feel extremely
strongly about the need to make a down payment on these capital im-
provements. In speaking with the bond rating agencies, who are
really responsible for what kind of credit risk the State of Maryland
continues to be, they have reflected a great deal of concern; not about
Maryland, but about all state and local governments who are making
a trend toward the idea of financing everything with borrowed dollars.
It's a trend we must reverse, in my opinion.

Q. Has anything been decided in the supplemental budget on the
exact figure to be sent to Welfare for food allowances?