The leadership and creativity at the state level should be a template for the federal government to follow in times of economic crisis like this.  The incoming Obama administration might learn a thing or two about how to address the economic crisis facing the nation.  Not all good ideas come from Washington, DC.  A lot of good solutions come from the states. From Stateline.org:

Still reeling from high gas prices this summer and plummeting retirement savings this fall, Americans will soon be feeling the pinch in other ways — from increased tuition to potentially higher taxes, as states try to close some $97 billion in budget gaps over the next two years.

States will have to find additional spending cuts of $32 billion for current budgets before even beginning to tackle $65 billion in deficits shaping up for the next fiscal year, the National Conference of State Legislatures reported Dec. 4. States have already closed a $40 billion gap since the start of the fiscal year, which was July 1 for all but four states.

“These budget gaps are approaching those seen in the last recession, which were the worst since World War II, and show every sign of growing larger,” William T. Pound, NCSL’s executive director said in a statement.

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