College students clash with administrators over steeply rising tuition. Public employees shut down statehouses amid cuts to pay and retirement benefits. Teachers and social welfare advocates protest budget cuts. Lawmakers struggle to cope with sharp declines in tax revenue. If government budgets were once an eye-glazing topic, they moved to the top of the public agenda in 2011 as state and local governments faced some of their most difficult decisions since the national recession began in late 2007. A fourth year of declining tax revenue meant deep spending cuts and, in many states, a rethinking of the role of government and the scope of the services it should provide.
Budget experts expect last year's tumult to give way to somewhat steadier times in 2012, as tax revenue continues a slow rebound. But few budget planners are celebrating, as cautious optimism about an uneven economic recovery is leading to subdued expectations.
