Deficit

May 28, 2009 -- In anticipation of lower than expected revenue receipts and the resulting budget shortfalls for fiscal years 2009 and 2010, Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson has released the following statement:

“Throughout the country, states are struggling with declining revenues, and Kansas is no exception. Fortunately, we are in a much better position than most states.

“We have a strategy in place to manage our budget shortfall through the end of the current fiscal year on June 30th. This strategy includes delaying some education payments a few weeks and speeding up the Department of Revenue’s tax amnesty program.    » read more »

May 28, 2009 -- HONOLULU – Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle issued the following statement today regarding the Council on Revenues’ reduced revenue forecast.

“The Council on Revenues’ latest reduced revenue projections show that the state budget shortfall is much more severe than earlier projected.

“Although last week I instructed all state departments to reduce discretionary spending by 2 percent, on top of earlier budget restrictions of 6 percent, this will not be enough to cover the $185.6 million shortfall between now and June 30, 2009.    » read more »

May 15, 2009 -- WILMINGTON – Delaware Governor Jack Markell released the following statement Friday in response to preliminary estimates from the Delaware Economic and Financial Advisory Council that show the state’s budget shortfall for fiscal 09 has increased to $45 million and the shortfall for fiscal 2010 has climbed to $800 million:

“DEFAC’s estimates make our historic challenge even more daunting. My administration will spend the next six weeks working with the General Assembly to responsibly address the $800 million shortfall. I am grateful the legislature passed the sports lottery bill, but as the numbers show, we have a lot of work left to do.    » read more »

Governor outlines plan to use executive action to balance budget, says his preference is to sign into law a negotiated budget agreement

May 14, 2009 -- Saint Paul – At the State Capitol this afternoon, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty said, “Politics as usual around this place is over. The people of Minnesota expect and deserve timely and decisive action. I will not let the legislature’s work spill over into a special session.

We are not going to waste taxpayer money with a costly overtime or have a state government shutdown, especially in this economy. My preference would be for DFL legislators to work with me on a reasonable budget solution, but if they can’t get that done I will take executive action to balance the budget.”    » read more »

May 14, 2009 -- WILMINGTON – Delaware Governor Jack Markell signed legislation Thursday that would reactivate a sports lottery in Delaware and bring the state more than $50 million closer to solving the state's historic revenue shortfall.

Markell signed the bill at Delaware Park, one of three Delaware racinos that will become the only venues east of the Mississippi River with a legal sports lottery this fall. He was joined by General Assembly leaders and William Rickman, owner of Delaware Park.

“My administration is looking forward to working with our business partners here at Delaware Park and at Dover Downs and Harrington to make the Delaware sports lottery as successful as possible,” Markell said.    » read more »

Proposes Solutions to Shore-up California’s Deficit, Find Further Savings in State Government

05/14/2009 -- A strong believer in a government that is transparent and accountable to the people, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today unveiled two May Revision Budget proposals to address the state’s pending deficit that has grown as the global economy has continued to deteriorate.

Just months after the Governor and state lawmakers solved a $42 billion deficit, the worldwide economic slowdown has produced a new multi-billion dollar deficit and our state is looking at some unprecedented actions to bring our budget back into balance. Both of the Governor’s proposals contain painful actions that will affect all Californians.    » read more »

Directive Will Result in Sharp Reduction in State Agency ‘P-Cards’

May 12, 2009 -- Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced additional measures to reduce spending and help control the current year state budget deficit, including a directive to all state agency heads to sharply cut back on the number of state Purchasing Cards (“P-Cards”) and credit cards.    » read more »

May 8, 2009 -- Oakland, CA-- In a major victory for California's 250,000 In-Home Supportive Service (IHSS) workers and the 440,000 seniors and people with disabilities who rely on IHSS for daily care, the Obama Administration has ruled that proposed cuts to the IHSS program violate the terms of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

The ruling came after the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and its California affiliates, SEIU UHW and SEIU Locals 521 and 6434, requested an opinion from Health and Human Services on whether California's proposed cuts violate the maintenance of effort clause of the ARRA.    » read more »

May 07, 2009 -- MADISON – Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle today announced more deep cuts in the state budget, as the state is facing a budget shortfall in the midst of the national economic crisis. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau next week will release figures that could show a deficit reaching $1.5 billion.    » read more »

BOSTON—Thursday, May 7, 2009 – Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick will file legislation today to close an estimated $953 million shortfall for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2009, using a combination of federal stimulus aid, stabilization funds, and other solutions. The legislation comes on the heels of an historic $1 billion drop in April tax revenues compared to last April revenues, and after previous measures to close an over $3 billion gap for FY 2009.

The legislation maintains Governor Deval Patrick’s commitment to education funding and preserving other key programs essential to the Commonwealth’s economic recovery. The bill filed today also includes supplemental appropriations to fund accounts experiencing deficiencies due to the economic downturn.    » read more »

Budget Agreement Closes $20.1 Billion Budget Gap, Largest in State History; Reduces Multi-year Budget Deficit by More Than 70 Percent

April 28, 2009 -- The New York State Division of the Budget today released the State’s official 2009-10 Enacted Budget Financial Plan, which includes updated information on the gap-closing plan, federal stimulus recovery funding, State revenues, State spending, out-year deficits, the State workforce, and other financial indicators.    » read more »

New Estimates Put 2010-11 Shortfall at $7.95 Billion

April 20, 2009 -- Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that her budget office – using the most up-to-date numbers on income taxes and other revenues – now estimates the current year’s budget deficit has increased to about $1.056 billion. In its monthly letter to the state Comptroller, the Governor’s budget office also released new estimates of the deficit for the next two fiscal years, putting the shortfall over the biennium at $7.95 billion.    » read more »

Use of federal recovery funds, furloughs, layoffs, and additional cuts planned as potential gap may exceed $550 million

BOSTON – April 14, 2009 – Amid a continuing national recession, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick today outlined a plan for closing an immediate state budget gap of $156 million, and announced his commitment to working with lawmakers to solve what could be an additional $400 million gap by the end of the fiscal year.    » read more »

Governor Directs OPM to Compile List of Administrative Options

April 14, 2009 -- Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell today announced that because of steadily declining tax revenues and a growing budget deficit for this fiscal year, she has directed her budget office to immediately provide her with a list of administrative actions she can undertake to reduce the deficit.

“The State of Connecticut is simply running out of cash, and with two months remaining in this fiscal year, we are also running out of time,” Governor Rell said. “With no deficit mitigation plan on the horizon from the Legislature, it is up to me to make the difficult choices to find any and all savings in this administration.    » read more »

April 10, 2009 -- DOVER -- Following swift action by the Senate and House this week, Delaware Governor Jack Markell on Friday signed legislation into law that reduces the shortfall the state is facing for the current fiscal year.

Despite the $12.9 million of savings in the legislation, Delaware is still facing a $30.8 million shortfall in the current year and a historic $750 million deficit for fiscal 2010. Both figures could increase if revenue estimates worsen over the next two months.    » read more »