Another Scott Walker lie!
In an interview with the Wall Street Journal (that liberal rag!) the state capital finance director says that the state isn't in fiscal peril. Nor does it have a do-or-die bond refinancing deadline that, if missed, will require mass layoffs (or for the 14 Democratic senators to come home):
But the notion that the state needs to refinance the debt because it's broke and can't make its debt payments is "completely wrong," said Mr. [Frank] Hoadley, the state finance director.
"This is about providing relief to the budget situation by rearranging the payments," over a longer period, he said.
However, there are other ways to address Wisconsin's current fiscal year budget deficit of $137 million other than refinancing the debt, said Joshua Zeitz, municipal finance analyst for MF Global.
And then there's this:
And since unions have already agreed to proposed givebacks on compensation and benefits, "it's becoming increasingly clear that this is a question more of politics than it is of a budget crisis," Mr. Zeitz added.
Indeed, Wisconsin is considered a very creditworthy state, with a double-A credit rating, and compared with some lower-rated states like California and Illinois, its finances are more manageable.
While Wisconsin does face a $3.6 billion deficit in its spending cycle over the next two years, that is equivalent to about 0.75% of its economic output over that time. By comparison, California's $25.4 billion one-year budget gap is equivalent to more than 1.3% of its output and Illinois' $15 billion deficit is equivalent to almost 2.4%.
When looking at the projected budget deficits as a percentage of the current year's budget amount, the comparison becomes even more stark. Wisconsin's $1.8 billion deficit for fiscal 2012 is just 12.8% of its current fiscal year budget, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Meanwhile, California's $25.4 billion shortfall is 29.3% of its current budget, while that figure for Illinois, which faces a $15 billion budget hole, is 44.9%, the nonprofit policy group said.
|
|
