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Florida Expects Huge Budget Shortfalls After Stimulus Ends

By Catherine Dolinski

Source: tbo.com

Florida will come up $2.65 billion short of covering its most “critical and high priority needs” in 2010-11, a deficit expected to swell to nearly $5.5 billion the following year, as one-time federal stimulus funds dry up.

That was the preliminary estimate that Amy Baker, head of the state Office of Economic and Demographic Research, laid out Thursday for the joint Legislative Budget Commission.

Those “critical and high priority needs” are the ones lawmakers traditionally include in the budget, ranging from public education to Medicaid.

Of the $2.65 billion, $923 million is deemed “critical” funding, while the rest covers “high priority” such as like the Medically Needy program, which supports poor, chronically ill patients.

State Rep. David Rivera, who chairs the budget commission, said afterward that state lawmakers have their work cut out for them, but demurred when asked where the money will come from.

State expects ’10 budget gaps

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