In what’s shaping up as the worst of four bad years for state budgets across the country, at least 20 governors have submitted budget proposals with no new or increased taxes, Stateline.org reports. Some are even proposing tax cuts, including Florida Gov. Rick Scott wants to reduce taxes by $2 billion despite a deficit of nearly $4 billion.
The trade-off is spending cuts. Many governors are looking at reducing corrections costs through incarceration alternatives. Few are proposing ambitious transportation projects. And many are looking for way to significantly cut Medicaid costs: Arizona is dropping a program that covers some 250,000 childless adults, for example, and South Carolina is cutting hospice care.