Deficit
States’ Fragile Recovery at Risk
Governor Chris Christie delivers his 2013 State of the State address to the New Jersey Legislature. (AP) See: State of the States 2013 With the national economy picking up and the housing market improving, states are poised in 2013 to finally rebound from the recession’s lingering revenue crunch. But continued budget delays in Washington may […]
Dueling Tax Measures Added to California Ballot
Whether California taxpayers should dig deeper into their pockets to help lift the weight of a nearly $16 billion state budget deficit will now be up to voters in November. The Secretary of State’s office announced Wednesday (June 20) that three tax initiatives, including dueling proposals to increase taxes to help fund schools, had received enough […]
Illinois Governor to Deliver Grim Budget Proposal
While some states are increasing their spending levels for the first time since the recession began, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn will be presenting a much less optimistic scenario when he unveils his fiscal 2013 budget on Wednesday. Quinn, a Democrat, will call for the closure of several state facilities, including a “supermax” prison that opened […]
Largest Municipal Bankruptcy Ever Prompts Muted Reaction Elsewhere
Last week’s bankruptcy of Jefferson County, Alabama, the state’s largest county, is not provoking a great deal of anxiety in local governments around the nation. Experts say it won’t have much effect on the ability of state and local jurisdictions to borrow. The filing from Jefferson, which is also the home of Birmingham, the state’s […]
Boeing and Microsoft Boom, but Washington State Busts
The Seattle Times/John Lok Arun Raha, Washington State’s chief economist, has repeatedly delivered bad fiscal news to lawmakers. Arun Raha, Washington State’s chief economist and revenue forecaster, is a good-natured man known for bringing a sense of humor to his job. But three times in the past three years, Raha has been forced to notify […]
Biggest States Face New Budget Gaps
In the nation’s five most populous states — California, Texas, New York, Florida and Illinois — the budget news over the past few weeks has been almost all bad. All five states either face budget deficits in the current fiscal year or expected shortfalls in the future. That’s in part because of the economy’s continuing weakness and […]
State Budgets Are Better, but Still Bad, Officials Say
Fiscal experts painted a mixed picture of state budgets Thursday (April 14) during a meeting of the National Conference of State Legislatures in Washington, D.C. Tax revenues are showing clear signs of improvement, but they are still far removed from their peak levels, according to lawmakers, fiscal directors, staff members and others who attended the […]
State Budget Gaps: How Does Your State Rank?
For the fourth year in a row, most states are facing substantial budget deficits. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the budget gaps total $112 billion for fiscal year 2012, which starts July 1 in most states. Only six states do not project having a shortfall to contend with. The situation has […]
Texas Struggles to Fill a Texas-Sized Budget Hole
AUSTIN, Texas — Last week, advocates for people with disabilities rallied at the state Capitol here to protest budget cuts. Eleven, including nine in wheelchairs, were arrested and charged with criminal trespass. This week, another group is organizing a far bigger rally that organizers say will draw more than 10,000 education advocates to the […]
Report Examines Fiscal Problems in Four Western States
Arizona and California have been hit hard by the recession, but substantial budget deficits existed in both states even before the housing crisis sparked a national economic decline, according to a new report from a regional think tank . The report, from the Brookings Institution Mountain West project and the Morrison Institute for Public Policy […]
Budget Woes Dominate Governors’ Inaugural Speeches
With state legislative sessions getting under way, five more of the nation’s 28 new governors were sworn in Monday (January 3), and most of them used their inaugural remarks to warn of difficult fiscal choices confronting them in the immediate future. “Choices have to be made and difficult decisions taken. At this stage of my […]
The Deficit Texas Didn’t See Coming
For weeks Rene Oliveira has been traveling across Texas, warning groups as small as 20 people and as large as 2,000 about the state’s coming fiscal crisis. Many in his audiences have little idea how dire the budget situation is. Oliveira, a state representative from Brownsville, is a Democrat who chairs the House Ways and […]