Facing fiscal 2011, states prepare to cut again

[The Northerner]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – After two years cutting spending on schools, health care, and other public services, U.S. states are preparing to carve even deeper into funding for fiscal 2011, a think tank report said on Monday.

"These budget pressures have not abated and, in fact, are increasing," the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities said. "Because unemployment rates remain high -- and are projected to stay high well into next year -- revenues are likely to remain at or near their current depressed levels. This is likely to cause a new round of cuts."

A Labor Department report last week showed unemployment rates fell in March in some states and state officials warily greeted the data as a sign their economies are on the mend.

But others, including California, continued to set new records with high jobless rates and many states saw no change.

For most states, fiscal 2011 begins this summer and governors are already suggesting cuts that "go even further than those that states have enacted to date," CBPP said.

In fiscal 2008 and 2009, 45 states and the District of Columbia slashed healthcare or education spending, according to CBPP.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100419/us_nm/us_usa_economy_states_cuts