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« The Cooper Loophole | Main | Entrepreneurial Mind 2.0 » December 12, 2007Tennessee's $114.6 Million Surplus
The Bredesen budget is $723 million over the state constitution's limit on the growth of state spending over the previous year - designed to keep the growth of government affordable without a tax increase. That's $60.25 million in excessive spending per month, or $242 million over four months. If the Bredesen administration had kept its spending within the constitutional limit, state government would currently have a $114.6 million revenue surplus through the first four months of the fiscal year. Excessive spending, not insufficient tax revenue, is the cause of the "shortfall." Posted in Tennessee Government News
Comments
"but the cigarette tax gap between projections and revenues continues to grow" But wasn't the tax increase on cigs justifed to decrease smoking? Could be it's either working better than expected or as punitive taxes usually do, driven buyers to the black market or out of state which of course justifies spending MORE state funds to enforce their tax laws. Posted by: Rick Forman at December 13, 2007 4:04 PMPost a comment
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Tennessee Gov. Bredesen's budget deficit shrank just a little in November as tax collections came in slightly above estimates. Overall, the administration has collected $126.4 million less revenue than it expected to collect four months into the fiscal year. Business tax receipts were above estimates in November, but the cigarette tax gap between projections and revenues continues to grow.