Courtesy of this report from WRAL
North Carolina will face one of the largest state deficits in the country next year, according to a new report.
The National Conference of State Legislatures surveyed 35 states to get a picture of their fiscal health heading into the 2011-12 budget year.
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Only California, Connecticut, Minnesota, New York and Texas are projecting deeper 2011-12 budget holes than North Carolina in terms of total dollars, according to the report. When looking at the deficit as a percentage of the state budget, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Minnesota, New York, Oregon and South Carolina are in more trouble than North Carolina, the report states.
The primary culprit in NC’s startling budget gap for next year is the structural deficit built in due to our budget writers’ short-sighted reliance on temporary taxes and federal stimulus dollars that are slated to run dry after this year – something I’ve been warning about for well over a year.
Brian, will their plan be the same as last summer?
Will they aay that we need tax increases or they’ll have to fire all the policemen and open all the prisons?
If Republicans get a majority, do you think it will be any different?
Zach,
Get ready for political granstanding of historic proportions next year. Unless the economy takes off into double-digit growth, a virtual impossiblity (more likely is a double dip), state budget writers will be screaming about people dying in the streets unless the “temporary taxes” are extended. They’ll also be begging DC for more federal bailout money.
Of course, they will claim that teachers need to be fired and prisons closed down. Why are lefties so eager to fire teachers, anyway?
If R’s get a majority, there will be political pressure for them to back up their claims about fiscal restraint and to attempt to balance the budget with cuts only. This will prove to be politically difficult because the current leadership has dug such a deep hole that there will need to be some significant cuts that will raise the ire of powerful lobbying and advocacy groups (especially SEANC).
Either way, it will be a wild ride next summer.
Look out for more taxes. That is the only response that NC’s governor can think of to do, when all that she has to do is revive our production base. I say this because a reduction of our production base & sheer corruption is the real root cause of this mess that we are in.
Just look at California if you want to know what to expect this upcoming year. Nobody works and everyone is collecting a check. Government will have to rob and steal from the citizens to pay their bills.
Thank you for your excellent reporting and helping NC residents see the truth about our economy.
I live in Fayetteville and our hospital is under scrutiny and may lose its Medicare/Medicaid approval.
I am contacting you to see if you think Kentucky would be a good place to retire. Their economy looks much better than ours and their hospitals are not in fear of losing Medicare approval.
Thank you for your assistance. I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks again for helping inform us.