TAXES: At Last,a Little Surplus

LKE Sisyphus condemned forever to roll a heavy stone up a steep mountain, the American taxpayer has long seemed fated to support indefinitely the ever-costlier needs of government. Now, surprisingly, the burden may be getting a little lighter—at least on the state and local level. For the first time since the late 1940s, state and local governments are beginning to show a collective surplus. Altogether, in this fiscal year, these government units are expected to take in about $ 138 billion—$7 billion to $ 12 billion more than they spend.

California will...

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