The Baltimore Sun reports on Maryland's lower-than-expected tax revenue and the problems it is causing for the state budget. On the heels of an unprecedented slew of new taxes imposed in November, the legislature is finding that there still may not be enough money to pay for all the goodies they would like to give away. Of course, during their special session to raise taxes they also expanded spending, including raising eligibility for Medicaid. Now that expansion may be in jeopardy:

Bigger savings could be achieved by delaying funding for a new Chesapeake Bay fund to which lawmakers plan to allocate $50 million a year for cleanup efforts, or by modifying a plan to expand eligibility for Medicaid, the government insurance program for the poor. Both proposals were approved during the special session.

When the Senate Finance Committee conducted a four-hour long hearing on expanding Medicaid in October, I was one of two people to testify against it. I reminded legislators that in the face of a recession, tax revenue is lower than expected and Medicaid spending is higher than expected. It would be foolish, I said, to expand Medicaid in light of the recession and Maryland's current tax revenue problems.

As you may expect, my testimony was completely disregarded. I guess the current problems in Annapolis are some sort of vindication. Considering the financial mess our state is in, however, I can't take too much comfort in it. After all, it's taxpayers like me who are going to suffer the most.