Radio Smart Talk for Thursday, February 10:

Pennsylvania is hardly the only state facing a budget shortfall. In fact, though we may take little solace in it, eleven other states are facing larger deficits as a percentage of their budgets. Pennsylvania’s 4.5 billion dollar deficit represents about 17.8 percent of the current year’s budget. By comparison, Nevada’s 1.5 billion short for next year, but that represents more than 45 percent of their annual budget. Illinois is 15 billion short for next year, almost 45 percent of this year’s budget.

What impact will such state budget deficits nationwide have on our economy? On local governments? On individual taxpayers? We’ll explore how different states are addressing their respective budgets, and what lessons Pennsylvania might draw from those efforts.

Listen to the program:

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