Posted on 02/04/2009 9:17:19 AM PST by thackney
The state is facing a budget shortfall approaching $1.65 billion this year, the Palin administration said Tuesday. It's a far bigger problem than state officials predicted two months ago in their last forecast.
Gov. Sarah Palin responded to the shortfall with a proposal that taps state savings. Palin said she was also reducing spending by $268.6 million. But a closer look shows most of that is just accounting -- not cuts from how much the state would otherwise spend on programs.
"They're claiming a $268 million cut. The reality is it's pretty much just a net zero proposition," said Anchorage Republican Rep. Mike Hawker, a budget leader in the state House.
Palin budget director Karen Rehfeld defended the proposal. She said the bottom line is indeed $268 million less in anticipated spending -- while acknowledging most of that is because the state lowered its estimate of much it would have to pay in oil tax credits.
Rehfeld said slashing the budget would not be responsible.
"We were really trying very hard to minimize the impact on public services, those types of things. Because I think that with the current economic conditions there's sensitivity. < snip >...
Rehfeld said that -- along with the $268 million less in anticipated spending -- the administration proposes to draw $1.36 billion from reserves this year to make up for the shortfall.
The state has over $7 billion in savings it can use to absorb deficits. Most was deposited last year when the state had a surplus. But those savings could go away quickly.
On top of the $1.36 billion draw that Palin wants for this budget year, which ends at the end of June, legislators expect an additional shortfall of up to $3 billion in the coming year.
(Excerpt) Read more at adn.com ...
Somebody up there find a grizzly bear and sic him on that Sean Cockerham guy.
Well...at least Alaska (and Gov Palin) were wise enough to stash revenue surpluses away....with 7 bil. in savings....they can get out of their 1.3 bil. shortfall without much pain
Unlike Florida with our RINO Gov. Crist....who managed to pee away the revenue surplus when the housing market was up,,,and sales tax revenues from real estate sales was plentyful. Now Florida has a deficit and no way to recoup without massive cuts and/or higher taxes.
Will gladly trade Alaska for governors...will take Palin for Crist...and throw in Mel Martinez too...with another “RINO to be named later”
Alaska’s financial problem may not be limited to one year; right now it might be structural. Alaska can dip into reserves this year, and maybe next year, but in three or four years the reserves will be gone. Palin will have to take a hard look at next year’s budget, but I have confidence she will handle the situation well.
There are probably 40 other states that wish they had Alaska’s problem. There are a lot states that are seriously upside down and don’t have any reserves to fall back on. They are in a situation where years of structural deficits in the time of plenty have now put them in the hole.
New York State’s shortfall is by far larger than that. We’re almost broke, thanks to the democrats and rinos we’ve had for governors. Argghhh.
Bingo.
They’d be in much better shape if the federal government didn’t tell Alaska they couldn’t drill for their own oil.
Maybe the Feds should have to pay Alaska for the privilege of not mining their natural resources.
Virginia managed to hang on to part of it’s rainy-day fund, although the Democratic governor underfunded it, and also tried to tap it LAST year so he could increase spending.
But if things don’t turn around quick, we’ll use up our surplus, even though the last two democratic administrations have raised our taxes I think over 2 billion dollars. They of course doubled spending to use up all the money — but not on the roads we needed.
BTTT
Vote? Yeah, like that does any good when so many nitwits out vote the informed voters. :-(
Quick math shows Alaska’s deficit is about $2,500 per person($1,650,000,000/660,000) and NY States $620 per person ($12,000,000,000/19,300,000).
The American electorate are like passengers on a train headed for a bridge that’s out. At each way station, the passengers have the opportunity to tell the engineer to use the switch to go a different route. It would avoid the chasm, but would also require a longer journey.
At each way station, the passengers are voting not only to stay on the same track, but to also speed up the train. Did I mention that the passengers are having a drunken party?
If you look closely, the “deficit” is the amount which would normally go to savings, which I believe is much different than New York’s actual shortfall.
I’m sure NY has more people that AK. New York City probably has more than AK. We’re just about broke here.
The deficit would be fixed overnight if the Gov would just roll back all the spending increases she put in place her first two years.
And get the money back from a certain Canadian company and we would have a 1/2 billion surplus.
Funny how all those actions (and not words) mack such a difference.
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