December 8, 2010

Loss of Federal Stimulus Funds About to Hit State Budgets Hard

The National Conference of State Legislatures released their November 2010 State Budget Update today. While the report notes that many states are experiencing some level of stabilization in revenue collections, and beginning to be more optimistic  about the general revenue outlook, they are at the same time facing unprecedented pressures on the demand for services such as healthcare and education, and also facing the withdrawal of the federal stimulus funding that has been critical in mitigating severe budget cuts for the last two years. Referred to as an impending ‘funding cliff’, the ramifications of the loss of federal fiscal support are expected to translate into painful budget cuts in states across the country starting in fiscal year 2012.

Inside Higher Ed provides some additional links to reports that echo these same facts. Meanwhile, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities continues to update their own report on state budget cuts.