South By North Strategies, Ltd.

A new report from the N.C Budget and Tax Center projects that state legislators will confront a $1.6 billion shortfall when they convene to prepare the state budget for fiscal year 2010-2011. From the Center’s report:

Unfortunately for state leaders, budget projections for this year and the next indicate their work is far from over. The state will face a budget shortfall of approximately $1.6 billion in FY 2010-11 and an estimated
$3.3 billion to $4.4 billion in FY 2011-12.
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State leaders must continue to take a balanced approach to managing this ongoing challenge by finding efficiencies, tapping all available resources, eliminating ineffective tax expenditures, improving tax collections, rethinking the distribution of state and local responsibilities, making spending reduction decisions based on well-grounded priorities, and, if necessary, raising additional revenue.