Another $100 Million Added to Coming Budget Shortfall

Or close to that anyway.

The Senate Ways and Means Committee updated its six year budget outlook earlier this month. While the numbers haven't changed much, they added the 2008 supplemental budget, bumping 2009-2011 spending by $608 million.

Going into the next biennium, lawmakers face a $2.5 billion shortfall, with just $783 million in the hard-to-tap budget stabilization account. There are a few more revenue forecasts between now and the first of the year, but there's little reason to suspect dramatic changes. Good news most likely looks like a shortfall of only $2 billion. And then there's the education lawsuit, working family tax credit, and all that other stuff folks want to spend money on.

Ought to be an interesting budget session.

The Evergreen Freedom Foundation has more on the outlook here and on the 601 lawsuit, which has implications for tax increases, here.