States Falling Deeper Into Deficit
Latest Budget Figures Show States Falling Deeper Into Deficit; CA’s $35B Deficit Leads Nation; TX Now Surpasses NY as 2nd Worst To: National Desk Contact: Bob Adams of the American Legislative Exchange Council, 202-466-3800 Latest budget figures released earlier this month by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) show state budget deficits deepening, with California’s alarming $35 billion deficit leading as the worst in the nation.
Texas, which recently surpassed troubled New York, is second worst with a potential $12 billion budget deficit.
Total state budget deficits for fiscal years 2003-04 now approach $90 billion nationwide.
“These figures are simply staggering,” said Michael Flynn, ALEC’s Director of Policy and Legislation. “But what’s more alarming is that few states have yet to responsibly address this self-inflicted crisis, a decade in the making, which finally hit home well over a year ago.”
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is the nation’s largest bipartisan, individual membership organization of state legislators with over 2,400 legislator members from all fifty states.
The top-ten states experiencing massive budget deficits include:
1. California, $35 billion
2. Texas, $12 billion
3. New York, $10 billion
4. Minnesota, $4.6 billion
5. Wisconsin, $2.6 billion
6. Michigan, $2.4 billion
7. Illinois, $2.25 billion
8. Washington, $2 billion
9. Connecticut, $2 billion
10.Maryland, $1.8 billion
“Raising taxes or clamoring for a federal bailout is not the answer, and in fact will only perpetuate and deepen the current fiscal crisis,” said Flynn. “What’s required is a candid and sober evaluation of each state’s medium and long-term costs of operating government. It’s only by reducing the size and scope of government in strategic and imaginative ways that each state finds a way out of its woes.”
Recently, the American Legislative Exchange Council and the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research released a groundbreaking report on state budgets, “Show Me the Money”: Budget-Cutting Strategies for Cash-Strapped States.
The report is a comprehensive evaluation of state budgets, offering 10 strategies for cutting state budget deficits, including short-, medium-, and long-term plans for reducing the cost of government.
For a complete list of deficit figures from all fifty states, a copy of the report “Show Me the Money,” or for more information, visit ALEC’s Web site at www.ALEC.org or contact Bob Adams at (202) 466-3800.
