In Oklahoma, A Democrat Calls for Spending Restraint
Oklahoma faces a budget gap. The governor-elect, a Democrat, says its a good reason to look for ways to spend less money.

Gov.-elect Brad Henry: As daunting as the latest budget numbers are, I sincerely believe that they present us not just with a challenge, but an opportunity as well. For better or worse, it will encourage state leaders to put the functions of government under a microscope and determine what works and what doesn’t, what should be a priority and what shouldn’t be. During these efforts, my administration will be focused on protecting public education, health care and other important programs. Everyone will have to tighten their belts, but hopefully, by thoroughly examining agency spending, we can minimize the disruption to vital state services. If department heads can’t justify each dollar that they spend, then maybe we can redirect that money to other priorities such as public school classrooms or health services for the elderly.

Henry's finance director-designate "believes strict across-the-board funding cuts are the most efficient approach to the state’s budget crunch," reports the Journal Record in Oklahoma City.

Deputy finance Director Alison Fraser tells the paper that revenue from the state's income tax is expected to be down 7.9 percent, with revenue from the sales tax down a smaller 6.2 percent.

Once again, another state faces a revenue shortfall because of its reliance on an income tax. The state of Oklahoma would have been well-served if it had followed Gov. Frank Keating's advice and phased out its income tax. And Tennessee is lucky it didn't create one. Had we done so, our budget crisis would have been made worse, not better.

UPDATE: What's to blame for various states' budget problems? It's not the mythical "structural" problem you often hear about, says Chris Edwards, director of fiscal policy at the Cato Institute.

If there is a structural problem in state tax systems, it is that individual income taxes raise too much money in boom years, thus causing states to overspend. State budget numbers can certainly be interpreted in different ways. Recent news stories have implied that state officials are innocent victims of sinister "budget gaps." However, I think a more accurate news report would read: "Huge budget forecasting errors cause massive overspending by the states."

That's certainly true in Tennessee.