Governor Sam Brownback is in the fight of his political life, under immense pressure by the tax and spend liberal left. It’s no mistake that Gov. Brownback was one of only four governors to receive an “A” grade in Cato’s Fiscal Policy Report Card on America’s Governors. My friend Chris Edwards at Cato calls out the leading liberal pundit of them all writing:
Paul Krugman slammed Brownback’s tax cuts, saying, “the state’s budget has plunged deep into deficit, provoking a Moody’s downgrade of its debt.”
One problem with that assessment is that state budgets don’t really “plunge deep into deficit” like the federal budget does. Nearly all states must legally balance their general funds. They often cheat a bit with accounting maneuvers, but they generally get it done.
This recent report from the Kansas Policy Institute (KPI) shows how modest budget changes in Kansas can close the gap between projected future revenues and spending. If Brownback is reelected, he will need to trim spending to match his reduced revenues because the Kansas governor is required to submit balanced budgets. By contrast, the federal government has no balanced budget requirement, and it is federal politicians who have “plunged deep into deficit” in recent years, ironically with Krugman’s strong support.
