More than a decade of fiscal irresponsibility has created a crisis. Since 1990, the state's debt burden has risen from approximately $3 billion to a staggering $32 billion, and this number threatens to continue to grow as we struggle to meet our obligations. This is a bipartisan problem that will require a bipartisan solution.

Largely, in an effort to meet the Constitutional requirement for a balanced budget, decisions were made along the way that may have at the time, met the goals of the day, but severely jeopardized our state's finances for the future.

This, combined with the rising costs of healthcare and court mandates, New Jersey faces a structural deficit each year of approximately $2.5 billion each year, and a crushing debt burden of over $32 billion - a number that promises to continue to grow even without new programs and services.

In our homes, we know that you shouldn't spend more than you bring in, nor should you use your charge card as a constant supplement to the income you do have.

The same is true for the state - each year, revenue grows at a rate of about 3% while expenditures increase by approximately 7% and to make matters worse - our borrowing has grown at a rate of approximately 12% since 1990!

In short, the state has had a long history of "kicking the can down the road", in the hopes that someone else would deal with it, and so far, no one has!