The Peach State is in good company when it comes to being in a financial crunch. Across the country, more states are reporting budget problems and the size of the gaps has increased, according to a new report by the National Conference of State Legislatures’ (NCSL).
Nationwide, the budget gaps for the current fiscal year (FY) are $47.4 billion; for FY 2010, which begins July 1, that imbalance jumps to $84.3 billion.
Corina Eckl, fiscal program director for NCLS, called those figures “absolutely alarming, both in their magnitude and in the painful decisions they present to state lawmakers.”Georgia has a projected shortfall of $2.2 billion this year, and state officials are currently working on rewriting the budget for FY 2010. To this end, they are awaiting revenue numbers for January, which are expected to be low.
