Washington’s lifeline

Gov. Rick Perry may claim to be “fed up” with Washington, and he may selectively (and very rarely) reject federal funds, but mostly he and his legislative partners have eagerly accepted federal cash.

In fact, according to an item in Peggy Fikac’s column in the San Antonio ExpressNews, federal revenue was the biggest revenue source for state government in fiscal 2010. That’s the first time that has happened since at least 1978.

Citing the state comptroller’s annual cash report, Peggy noted that the state collected nearly $35.4 billion in state taxes during fiscal 2010 but received nearly $36.9 billion in federal money. The federal revenue presumably included a lot of onetime stimulus money, which won’t be resupplied in January when it’s time to start drafting the new state budget in the face of a huge revenue shortfall.

Although the stimulus money will be missing, legislative budget writers – despite all the antiWashington rhetoric of the recent political campaigns – will accept virtually every other federal dollar available, including federal Medicaid funds. Ideological talk is easy. Telling Texas voters that their federal income tax payments should be used to help balance another state’s budget – but not ours could be political suicide.

Educators, meanwhile, should keep in mind one important chunk of federal money that Texas so far hasn’t been able to obtain. This is the $830 million in emergency funds, approved by Congress last summer, designed to save educators’ jobs. Texas applied for its share, but Perry refused to comply with a congressional requirement and assure the feds that the state wouldn’t use the money to replace state education funds.

The money apparently hasn’t been lost, at least not yet, but who knows how many more political games may be played before the issue is finally resolved.