Fiscal conservatives seek more state budget cuts

An improving economy may be lifting some pressure from a strained state budget, but an influential coalition of fiscal conservatives gathered Tuesday at the Capitol to press for additional cuts to government spending.

Much of the $15 billion in budget cuts implemented during last year's contentious legislative session were one-time accounting gimmicks that are no longer available and merely delayed costs until the next budget fight begins in the 2013 session, said Talmadge Heflin, a former state representative and fiscal policy director for the Texas Public Policy Foundation.

Legislators must begin working now, he said, to form a smaller government that requires no new tax money or other revenue.

"We've been looking at writing the budget, at funding state government, as a math issue. And now is the time when we have to start looking at it as a governance issue," Heflin said.

http://www.statesman.com/news/texas-politics/fiscal-conservatives-seek-more-state-budget-cuts-2250570.html

[font color=green]Three percent cuts for state agencies, universities and colleges in 2013 and 7% cuts in 2014 and 2015.[/font]