Tennessee’s finances are in better shape than officials thought a few months ago. The State Funding Board now thinks the state will bring in another $180 million in taxes as Tennesseans spend more. But officials say planning the next budget still won’t be easy.
The Funding Board figures the state will take in more money next year too. But officials have cautioned it won’t be enough to ward off cuts then, because of rising costs like education and healthcare. Still, Finance Commissioner Mark Emkes says the latest boost does help.
“The cuts will not have to be as severe as we thought a couple months ago, but I want to leave very clear there’ll still be some pain in the budget. I don’t want people to walk away from here thinking everything’s fine.”
Aside from softening cuts, Emkes has said some extra money should go toward rebuilding the state’s rainy-day fund.
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