State budgets primarily on autopilot, new analysis finds
(World News USA)

State budgets are relatively `fixed,` or pre-committed every year, which causes elected officials to find ways to spend less in certain areas or tax more to meet preexisting mandates, a new analysis by the Urban Institute says. `Fiscal Democracy in the States: How Much Spending is on Autopilot?` evaluates how much spending was fully or partially restricted in six key states from 2000 to 2015: California, Florida, Illinois, New York, Texas, and Virginia. An estimated 70 percent of state spending is `on autopilot,` the report notes, meaning financial constraints are in place before proposals or negotiations ever begin for state budgeting. `Measuring predetermined state budget commitments is...