Cuts Highlight Urgency to Commit to Responsible Financial Stewardship

The federal government announced that it will withdraw approximately $12 billion in public health grants issued during COVID-19 relief efforts—$38 million of which had been allocated to government and non-profit agencies in Delaware.

“The COVID-19 pandemic is over, and [the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services] will no longer waste billions of taxpayer dollars responding to a…pandemic that Americans moved on from years ago,” said a statement issued to multiple news organizations.

Governor Matt Meyer’s hyperbolic response was disappointingly partisan.

“The Trump Administration is stealing $38 million from Delaware that goes directly towards funding key public health programs,” he said in a press release.

The reality is, this federal funding was never permanent. Some of the block grants were already reportedly set to expire later this year, with the rest running out by 2026 or 2027.

While there are valid concerns about the sudden loss of beneficial programs, this move by the federal government might signal a long-overdue reckoning with the nation’s unsustainable spending habits. Setting aside the polarizing discussion of the federal policies, it is undeniable that the nation’s debt has reached epic proportions. Growing steadily for more than four decades, the U.S. now owes its creditors more than $35 trillion, with taxpayers spending more than $1 trillion annually just to cover the interest. Despite a statutory requirement to enact balanced budgets, Delaware has also demonstrated a lack of fiscal responsibility in recent years—a pattern the Meyer Administration seems intent on continuing.

Gov. Meyer recently unveiled his "budget reset," containing a series of proposed changes. While the administration acknowledged Delaware’s flat revenue growth, the governor’s revised $6.58 billion spending plan is an increase of about 7.4% over the current $6.1 billion budget. If the Meyer plan is enacted in time for the start of the new fiscal year on July 1st, state spending will be more than $2 billion higher than it was just five years ago—an astonishing hike of more than 45%! There are few Delawareans who have seen their income or buying power grow at this rate over the same period. In his reset, the governor had the opportunity to adjust state spending to match our state’s slowing fortunes. Instead, he doubled down, projecting significantly higher budget growth over the next few years and paying for the overruns by using safety net funds.

During the budget reset presentation, Office of Management and Budget Director Brian Maxwell admitted that not only does the administration intend to spend the entire $469 million stabilization fund, but that Delaware could face a nearly half-billion-dollar deficit within two years.

Planning to spend money faster than it comes in is a blueprint for failure. Delaware’s working parents and small business owners know the brutal reality of cold math. They understand that income is finite, priorities must be established, and difficult choices made. As their chosen leaders, should they expect anything less of us?

Instead of the increased spending, higher taxes, and fees proposed by the governor, it is imperative that the executive and legislative branches work together with a shared sense of bipartisan purpose—identifying the state’s most pressing needs, setting aside less urgent wants, and ensuring that resources are allocated in ways that benefit all Delawareans.

We urge our state to take meaningful steps toward long-term stability. That includes adjusting the upcoming budget to reflect our slower revenue growth, finding efficiencies across agencies, and putting in place firm protocols that tie future spending growth to metrics like inflation and population changes.

The decisions we make today will shape Delaware’s financial future. Let’s choose wisely. Let’s choose responsibly.

The upcoming budget should be reduced to reflect Delaware’s slower revenue growth. State leaders must look for efficiencies, curtail unproductive programs, and seek opportunities to reallocate funds where they will have the greatest impact—including, where appropriate, backfilling the loss of federal support. To place the state on a firmer financial foundation, Delaware should consider adopting binding protocols that link future spending growth to measurable factors such as inflation, population growth, and other justifiable metrics.

Delaware’s elected officials have a responsibility to serve as careful stewards of the state’s financial present and future. Now is the time for them to make the tough, responsible decisions that Delawareans expect and deserve.