Here's a shock: state budgets are not doing so good. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) released a report today cataloging the gory details.

With the start of the fiscal year for most states having begun less than a month ago (July 1), several state budgets are already going into the red due to the continuing economic downturn, which has reduced state revenues even more than originally projected. According to the report, the combination of "federal stimulus dollars, service reductions, revenue increases, and funds from reserves" that most states cobbled together to address earlier projected budget shortfalls are not enough, and a number of states "will continue to struggle to find the revenue needed to support critical public services for a number of years." Anyone want odds on California becoming the first state to adopt the "Thunderdome" model?

Read the Executive Summary here.

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