Cuts to Services
Falling home values and rising unemployment have taken a toll on our state and local tax revenues. The $6.1 trillion in homeowner wealth that has been lost in the last three years has led to a $58 billion reduction in annual property tax revenues.29 The decline in tax receipts has contributed to budget crises all over the country. In a National League of Cities survey, 67% of cities reported hiring freezes or layoffs and 62% reported having to delay or cancel capital projects because of deterioration in the economy.30 According to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, � ���"At least 48 states have addressed or still face shortfalls in their budgets for fiscal year 2010 totaling $165 billion or 24 percent of state budgets,� �� � and 34 states are already anticipating holes in their 2011 budgets totaling at least $180 billion.31
As a result, states have been forced to make drastic cuts:32
� �� 21 states have made cuts to public health programs.
� �� 22 states have made cuts to services for the elderly and disabled.
� �� 24 states have made cuts in K-12 education.
� �� 32 states have made cuts in higher education.
� �� 40 states have made cuts in their government workforce, often through layoffs
Back to Business as Usual
While taxpayers suffer under the crushing burden of the economic crisis and are on the hook for the Wall Street bailouts, the banksters are back to business as usual. They are ignoring their commitments to taxpayers and are helping themselves instead, setting aside tens of billions for bonuses, returning to the same risky behavior that caused the crisis in the first place, and making tens of billions in profits � ��" all on the backs of American consumers and home owners.
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