In case you weren’t aware – budgets, corporate, individual, and state are being tightened and trimmed across the country.  As revenues from existing sources decline, so to will services.  The challenge for leaders is not to try and tax their way out of this situation.  If they do, we imagine there will be fewer tax happy leaders after the ’10 Election.  Of course, the flip side could be said about leaders who choose to do absolutely nothing.  The leaders who come out of this smelling the best will be the ones who crack the code that holds the key to keeping taxpayers happy.  Taxing your way out won’t work, and neither will sitting still.  From the Daily Star:

School districts, municipalities, counties and nonprofit groups are still uncertain about their financial futures, and this is no small part to the failure of a one-day special session of the state Legislature last week.

In fact, the only decision made last week was by the State University of New York, which is raising tuition by $310 for the spring 2009 semester and again in the fall, as well as other tuition increases for certain programs within the state higher education system.

What we know for sure is that tough times and tighter budgets are likely to last for at least a year or two, and higher taxes are a likely result.

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