Rich Townsend on Zero-Based Budgeting

5% Spending Cut

"Would you be an advocate for zero percent increase? Would you start with a flat budget year over year?"

– Michael Dinan

"I would start with -5%."

– Rich Townsend

Fiscal discipline means limiting spending to top priorities in a world where many budgets just automatically keep spending year over year. Some even give increases of several percent without any justification.

Instead, my budget baseline would be for 5% spending cuts. With focused budgets, we can do more for our schools, more for our commuters, and more for our property values.