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posted by Fnord666 on Wednesday July 05 2017, @04:33PM   Printer-friendly
from the government-by^Wof-the-people dept.

The World Socialist Web Site reports

Three US states--New Jersey, Maine, and Illinois--with a combined population of 23 million people entered a new fiscal year [July 1] without a state budget, forcing widespread shutdowns of public services, state offices, and schools, as well as the closure of state parks on the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

In a fourth state, Connecticut, Democratic Governor Dannel Malloy ordered across-the-board spending cuts totaling $2.1 billion after the legislature failed to pass a balanced budget. Malloy's cuts include the elimination of summer youth employment programs and rental assistance for low-income families, as well as a reduction in education funding.

Six more states entered the new fiscal year without a final budget, but without, as yet, any significant shutdown of state services: Delaware, Massachusetts, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin. Cuts are to be expected in all of these states if new budgets are not enacted by July 5, the first workday after the holiday.

[...] In a display of elitist arrogance, [Republican Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey] spent the weekend with his family at an official residence in a state park that had otherwise been closed to the public by his own executive order.

[...] In Maine, Republican Governor Paul LePage ordered the first statewide shutdown of government services since 1991 after the legislature failed to bow to his demand that it adopt a new, two-year, $7 billion budget without any tax increases.

In a brazenly antidemocratic action, LePage and Democratic and Republican state legislators had already agreed that the new budget would repeal a measure approved last November by the votes of more than 357,000 people in a statewide referendum. The referendum imposed an additional three percent income tax on the wealthiest state residents--those who make more than $200,000 a year--to increase funding for public education.

Additional Coverage: ABCNews


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  • (Score: 2) by tangomargarine on Wednesday July 05 2017, @08:00PM

    by tangomargarine (667) on Wednesday July 05 2017, @08:00PM (#535390)

    A bank balance is just one way to try to measure profit, but it's not the only way. Maybe that is your confusion.

    Now, describe the profit motive WRT SoylentNews.

    You're not listening to him. In this case, SN's profit is the value of the discussions we have, not dollars. If at a certain point our discussions' value sinks too low, it may not be worth "buying" anymore.

    --
    "Is that really true?" "I just spent the last hour telling you to think for yourself! Didn't you hear anything I said?"
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