• Over half of the states are anticipating budget problems.
  • The 22 states in which revenues are expected to fall short of the amount needed to support current services in fiscal year 2009 are Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin. In addition, the District of Columbia is expecting a shortfall in fiscal year 2009. The budget gaps total $38.8 to $40.5 billion, averaging 8.8 – 9.2 percent of these states’ general fund budgets.

22 STATES PLUS DC WITH PROJECTED GAPS FOR FY2009

 

Amount

Percent of FY2008 General Fund

Alabama

$784 million

9.2%

Arizona

$1.7 billion

16.2%

California

$16.0 billion

15.4%

District of Columbia

$96 million

1.5%

Florida

$3.4 billion

11.0%

Illinois

$1.8 billion

6.6%

Iowa

$350 million

6.0%

Kentucky

$266 million

2.9%

Maine

$124 million

4.0%

Maryland

$808 million

5.5%

Massachusetts

$1.2 billion

4.2%

Minnesota

$935 million

5.5%

Nevada

$565 million

7.8%

New Hampshire

$50 million - $150 million

1.6 – 4.8%

New Jersey

$2.5 - $3.5 billion

7.6 - 10.6%

New York

$4.9 billion

9.1%

Ohio

$733 million - $1.3 billion

             2.7 - 4.7%

Oklahoma

$114 million

1.6%

Rhode Island

$380 million

11.2%

South Carolina

$160 million

2.4%

Vermont

$59 million

5.1%

Virginia

$1.2 billion

6.9%

Wisconsin

$652 million

4.8%

TOTAL

 $40.5 - $38.8 billion

 9.2 - 8.8%

  • Another three states face budget shortfalls that will need to be closed for fiscal year 2009, but information on the size of those deficits is not available. They are Louisiana, Michigan, and Mississippi. Analysts in three other states — Connecticut, Missouri, and Texas — are projecting budget gaps a little further down the road, in FY2010 and beyond.