Budget under the knife

I see that Governor Blanco has cut $65 million from the state's $30 billion budget. She targeted such things as:

The governor late Thursday issued vetoes to House Bill 1 that actually don't affect many projects or programs. The largest cuts, $46 million and $18 million for barrier island work, could be restored if the state sells the remaining portion of a tobacco settlement instead of waiting for tobacco companies to pay it over the next 20 years.

I see she also veto'd $40,000 for the SugArena and $75,000 for scholarships for the Southern University Marching Band.

Before we start thinking that the Governor is getting all conservative on us, we've got to remember that $65 million dollars is not even a quarter of a percent of a $30 billion budget. $65 million sounds like a lot of money, and I'm sure I could live on it without too much trouble, but $65 million for a state government ain't much money.

It's a start, but it ain't much.