Mass Budget Checks in

From the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center:

The Commonwealth is facing a severe fiscal crisis, caused both by the deep national recession and by policy choices made over the past decade in Massachusetts.
One option to close the state's $3.5 billion budget gap would be to develop a plan that resembles a stable four-legged stool: budget cuts; federal stimulus money; new tax revenue; and reserves.
The House Ways and Means (HWM) proposal seeks instead to balance the budget on only two of these legs, suggesting no withdrawal from the Stabilization Fund and no new tax revenue. As a result, the committee proposes deep cuts in local aid, human services, education, and virtually every other area of state government.
This Budget Monitor provides an overview of the House Ways and Means proposals for each category of state government, comparing spending levels to the FY 2009 budget and to the Governor's proposals.
The Budget Monitor can be found at www.massbudget.org