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Republican Governors Buck Anti-Tax Reputations
Even as Republican lawmakers in Washington, D.C., pass tax cut after tax cut, many GOP governors are proposing and signing into law major state tax increases. These governors, a group that includes Alabama Gov. Bob Riley, Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne, Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Ohio Gov. Bob Taft and Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn, are turning […]
Easley, Kempthorne Reject Anti-State Rhetoric
One’s a Southern Democrat, the other a Western Republican, but North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley and Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne are in full agreement in rejecting some harsh conservative rhetoric accusing states of poor fiscal management and criticizing their pleas for federal money. “I resent that and I reject that,” Kempthorne said in a recent […]
State Revenues Hit By Bush Tax Bill
Despite doling out $20 billion in fiscal aid to state governments, President Bush’s $350 billion tax cut bill will drive down total state tax collections by at least $1 billion and as much as $3 billion over the next two years, dampening the bill’s positive impact on state coffers, analysts say. That’s because nearly every […]
On the Record: Kansas Budget Director Duane Goossen
New Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D) inherited a cash-starved state when she took the reigns from departing Gov. Bill Graves (R) this past January. But she also inherited a bit of fiscal expertise from the departing governor when she decided to keep his budget guru, Duane Goossen, in charge of state budget matters. Spanning Republican and […]
Bush Medicaid Plan Draws Mixed Reviews
President Bush’s proposal to reform Medicaid, a state-federal program that provides health coverage for 50 million low-income Americans, drew mixed reviews from governors, state budget directors and policy analysts at a Harvard University conference last week. Bush’s proposal would give states new powers to administer Medicaid in exchange for a fixed cap on the amount […]
State Tax Revenue Fell Sharply in Fiscal 2002
After posting significant gains from 1995 through 2001, state tax revenue fell sharply in fiscal year 2002, declining 5.6 percent across all states, according to a new report from the Rockefeller Institute of Government. The Rockefeller report A Bad Year: Fiscal Year 2002 Tax Revenue Summary notes that the decline is even steeper, coming in […]
Lieutenant Governors Fend Off Budget Axes
While their heads are safer than they would have been during the French Revolution, many of the nation’s lieutenant governors are taking nicks and cuts from state lawmakers wielding budget axes. The bleeding so far is not excessive in most states the cuts are in line with cuts to the rest of state government. But […]
Congress Approves Money for States in Tax Bill
Congress threw the states a $20 billion lifeline Friday (5/23) as part of a $350 billion tax cut plan supporters said would stimulate the economy. President Bush is expected to sign the bill into law within the next week. The $20 billion of fiscal relief is a huge victory for states, many of which are […]
Supreme Court Gives Maine Rx Green Light
In a decision closely watched by dozens of states, the U.S. Supreme Court Monday allowed Maine to implement Maine Rx, a trail-blazing program that enables the state to offer discounted prescription drugs to the working poor and elderly people. Under the program, which has been in limbo due to a legal challenge, Maine asserts the […]
AWOL Texas Lawmakers Enrich Legislative Lore
Texas lawmakers who fled to neighboring Oklahoma to deprive the legislature of a quorum a move that succeeded in killing a redistricting bill wrote the latest chapter of a long comic history of legislative shenanigans. Lone Star State Republicans wanted to redraw U.S. House districts to make it likely the GOP would pick up seats, […]
Senate, House Tax Bills Differ on State Aid
The states’ quest for fiscal aid took a step forward Thursday when the Senate Finance Committee, under pressure from moderate Republicans, voted to include $20 billion for state governments as part of President Bush’s tax cut plan. The final outcome for state aid remains far from clear, however, since the House included no relief for […]
States Reaching for Corporate Profits
Reeling from gaping budget gaps, states are starting to explore ways to crack down on the complex accounting schemes businesses use to avoid paying state taxes. New Jersey, in a move closely watched by other states, changed its tax laws in 2002 to keep businesses from shifting profits to affiliates in low tax states. The […]