Gov. Bill Haslam’s inauguration and gala Saturday followed several days of widely promoted, privately sponsored bipartisan inaugural events across the state. Those activities, unfortunately, may be the most fun events on the new governor’s official work calendar for the next 18 months. And if state tax receipts don’t pick up noticeably before then, the bleak period that confronts Gov. Haslam may last even longer.
A $1 billion shortfall
As it now stands, Gov. Haslam must expect a budget shortfall of at least $1 billion when federal stimulus funds expire at the end of the current budget year on June 30. Those funds, which were apportioned by the Obama administration over three years, helped prop up services in education, health care and a range of other necessary state services. They helped Tennessee and nearly every other state in the union hold a stable course as the financial crash of 2008 shook the world’s economy and plunged western nations into the Great Recession.
Job cuts won’t do the job
Contingency plans crafted by former Gov. Phil Bredesen to cope with the loss of federal stimulus aid showed how difficult it would be to balance the state budget by cutting back further on services and firing more state employees.