The Legislature must adjourn in 27 hours, and as of this writing, no deal has been struck to finance the $850 million in new spending that's been authorized by the appropriators. The Senate wants to replace the per-employee "head tax" with a payroll tax (which sounds like a decent trade-off at first blush; stay tuned). The Assembly continues to insist on a mutant version of the gross-receipts tax. Neither side has budged.
What sounds really promising is a rumor, reported by George Knapp of the local CBS affiliate this afternoon, that Assembly Republicans are threatening to pull a Texas on us and walk out of the Legislature, denying Democrats sufficient votes to pass any new taxes. This would necessitate a special session, at which (with luck) some of the spending programs could be cut. Of course, Knappster made his name reporting UFO sightings (and, naturally, during his report consulted a psychic who offered a prediction of when both houses might come to an agreement), but this is the best news I've heard lately.
Sure, Kenny. Shut the government down in July when schools aren't in session and everybody's on vacation anyway. See who cares.
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