Here is the update issued this afternoon (Monday, February 9), titled Situational Awareness Statement #9 – Long Duration Winter Storm with Moderate to Heavy Snow through Late Monday Night. It has updates from the Department of Public Safety, MEMA, MassDOT, and other state agencies.
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Understanding the Governor’s Budget Presentation
The Patrick Administration deserves great credit for its efforts to make its budget as transparent as possible. Nonetheless, a 46 billion dollar spending program is intrinsically complex, so here are answers to a few questions that I found myself asking as I worked through the presentation. How big is the budget? The financial statement section shows proposed […]
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State budget basics What entities comprise the Commonwealth of Massachusetts? What entities and activities does the legislature budget for annually? What are the major sources of revenue that support budgeted expenditures? What are the major objects of budgeted expenditures? How have the major categories of state spending grown over time? School Building Authority Process State […]
State employee payroll totals
The spreadsheet below compares census data on state payroll as of March 2008 with March 2000, responding to comments on this post. Most areas other than higher education, which is not funded primarily on the state budget, show cuts. The increase in higher education more than accounts for the growth in state employment — without […]
What are the major objects of budgeted expenditures?
Roughly speaking, half of the Commonwealth’s budgeted spending goes through agencies that primarily serve the needs of the less advantaged — through the subsidized health plans, public assistance, and other social services, including housing and subisidized day care.
Does the state have a structural deficit in its budgeted funds?
The answer appears to be Yes in the sense that we face needs that considerably exceed revenue as we prepare the 2009 budget and look out over the next few years.