Alabama is broke. In case you havent heard, it is estimated that Alabamas 2015 General Fund Budget will be approximately 160 million dollars in the hole going into our next legislative session. We do not have the money to properly fund anything. Prisons, healthcare, mental health, public safety, the court system, the list goes on and on. If it requires money, we simply do not have it with no real hope of generating any real revenue in the future. So, where do we go from here? Great question. Raising taxes is off the table. Since we cant raise taxes, we raise fees on everything to the point where we are beginning to make basic services, like access to the court system, prohibitively expensive for the average Alabamian. So, maybe we create a lottery, maybe create a compact with the Native American casinos or maybe even combine the Education Trust Fund Budget with the General Fund Budget to get some growth taxes into the General Fund budget. Something must be done. Because of the stark reality of increasing costs and declining revenue, all things are being considered. However, I firmly believe this to be true. You can not pay bills in 2015 and beyond with a 1901 budget. We are going to have to deal with Alabamas constitution before any real change can take place. So, any suggestions?
Posted on: Thu, 14 Aug 2014 04:55:10 +0000
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