Watching states move along the Continuum of State Fiscal Stress is like watching a pendulum: four years ago virtually all of the states ranked in the top two categories, and as the economy deteriorated they began to shift through the middle and into the bottom two groups. It now appears that fiscal year 2010 could be another year of transition, with states having trimmed their spending and their revenue estimates enough to restore a semblance of stability. What is unknown, and unknowable, is how many more years will pass before the pendulum completes the cycle.
