State ends year with negative cash balance and little in the bank

[The Northerner]

Source: Ithaca Journal

ALBANY -- New York state government ended the calendar year with about a $600 million shortfall in its main operating fund for the first time in recent history, requiring the state to use most of its reserves to pay December's bills.

The deficit in the general fund illustrates the difficult financial situation New York continues to face, Gov. David Paterson said on Thursday.

While he stressed the state can meet its obligations, Paterson said, "Our state is spending beyond its means. Our state is running out of money."

Paterson indicated that revenues are expected to pick up in January, allowing him to restore $750 million in aid to schools and local governments that he withheld in December due to the cash crunch.

Read more: http://www.theithacajournal.com/article/20091231/NEWS01/912310369/1124/State-ends-year-with-negative-cash-balance-and-little-in-the-bank

[MichiganVote]

1. Talk to your brokers. They seem to be doing alright.

[DJ13]

2. How can the state with all that Wall street money run short?

They need to consider a state tax increase on those million/billionaires.

[benlurkin]

3. They can afford to move out of the state

As I understand it,they are avoiding the high property taxes by changing their residencies to differant states. The people left behind are saddled with the property taxes, sales taxes and everything else the state is trying to do to bring in revenue.

I couldn't possibly afford to live there and can't figure out how they (the middle class and working poor) get by with the hike in state payroll taxes.

[JDPriestly]

5. Connecticut is quite a convenient commute I have heard.

Lieberman anyone?

[JDPriestly]

4. Lots of states are in the red.

Interestingly, that may be the result of a Bush strategy.

When he was the governor of Texas, he managed to unload a lot of the burden for taxing and running up debt onto the more local governments. That's the Bush way: pass the debt on to the little guys; keep the assets at the top where the Bushes are.