News-Record.com

I reported last week that funding for promoting the High Point Furniture Market was among the cuts that the Commerce Department offered to Gov. Bev Perdue as a way to help balance next year's budget.

The recurring funding (that which the state gives every year unless legislators act to stop it) for the market is less than $1 million. That hardly seems like enough to cure what could be in the neighborhood of $3 billion budget gap. Still, the old saying "A million here, a million there and pretty soon you're talking about real money," often applies when trying to cut down a state budget.

I didn't have a chance to speak to Perdue directly about the Commerce submission last week, but did today after the Council of State meeting.

Perdue said that marketing of the High Point Furniture Market was important, particularly with challenges from other venues.

"I mean with (Las) Vegas trying to come in and take some ground from North Carolina we really must stay committed to the show itself and the market it opens up globally for North Carolina," Perdue said.

It's good news for High Point that she can speak in those terms. It would make it much harder for those lobbying to win support if they had to explain what the market was to Perdue from scratch.

That said, Perdue said that all budget items "were on the table" as potential cuts and she could not commit to what might happen with the market one way or the other.

"My heart's in the right place, I just don't know that the state's pocket book is in the right place," she said.

Click here to listen to her full answer. (40 seconds)