Gov. Purdue is now calling for most state agencies to cut their budgets this year by nine percent.
that could potentially jeopardize such North Carolina icons as "The Lost Colony"
outdoor drama in Manteo and the High Point Furniture Market.
Whoa, you know times must be tight when such essential government services like outdoor dramas and advertising dollars for furniture makers might fall under the chopping block.
But before you shed too many tears for state budget makers, lets put all the "slash" and "crisis" hyperbole into some perspective. The current year's General Fund budgeted $21.35 billion in spending. The latest estimates put the current year deficit at roughly $2.2 billion. That leaves $19.15 available to fund current year operations. $19.15 billion is larger than the budget of just two years ago (FY 2006-07 budget spent $18.9 billion).
Also consider that the General Assembly introduced nearly $4.2 billion in new state spending in just the last three years – an increase of 24 percent. In short, the reason for the current budget "crisis" was summed up rather accurately by Sen. Tony Rand:
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