Braun says 'nothing got hammered' in budget cuts, defends slashing local public health funding

Gov. Mike Braun said his first 100 days in office has been a "wonderful opening act" while reflecting Wednesday on a legislative session in which the state budget saw major cuts and property tax reform that didn't go as far as Braun wanted.

A recent state revenue forecast created a $2 billion budget shortfall that lawmakers filled with tax hikes and major spending cuts. When asked how Hoosiers will be impacted by those cuts, Braun said he's optimistic about the economy.

"And when it comes to what we really cut, nothing got hammered and the most important stuff stayed intact," Braun said.

READ MORE: Republicans say budget takes care of priorities, Democrats say it moves the state backward
 

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Most state agencies received a 5 percent funding cut. Higher education institutions saw their funding cut by 5 percent, while the money they use to maintain their buildings was also slashed by 5 percent.

The budget cut local public health funding from $150 million this year to $40 million a year, a 70 percent reduction. Braun said it's "misguided" to believe you have to spend more to improve health.

"But don't interpret any of that as meaning that we're not going to pay a lot of attention to it," Braun said.

Braun said his biggest win of the session was a slate of bills aimed at lowering health care costs — even as those bills were dramatically scaled back by the end of session.

Brandon is our Statehouse bureau chief. Contact him at bsmith@ipbs.org or follow him on Twitter at @brandonjsmith5.