States Looking Ahead to 2013

Legislative sessions begin in 14 states this week, and a number of governors will propose their budgets for the upcoming fiscal year later this month, bringing new attention to continued problems with state budget conditions — including the large cuts in public services that states have imposed in the past few years.  The CBPP reports below summarize the cuts in education and other areas that states are implementing in the current fiscal year.

• State Budget Cuts in the New Fiscal Year Are Unnecessarily Harmful.  The cumulative effect of four consecutive years of lagging revenues has led to budget-cutting of historic proportions. Our analysis of enacted state budgets shows that budget cuts are hitting education, health care, and other state-funded services harder in the current fiscal year — which runs through June 2012 — than in any year since the recession began.

• New School Year Brings Steep Cuts in State Funding for Schools.  Elementary and high schools are receiving less state funding than last year in at least 37 states, and in at least 30 states school funding now stands below 2008 levels — often far below.

Next week, we’ll issue an updated estimate of state budget shortfalls.