Some states are so anxious for the anticipated revenues they've already committed the money to various projects.

Nebraska is seeing yet another federal funding cut to Medicaid this year, forcing lawmakers to reduce services or make up the difference with state dollars before they approve a new budget.

The Indiana Senate has included an expansion of Medicaid through the Healthy Indiana Plan in the state budget.

State government agencies in Iowa face the loss of $46.5 million because of forced federal budget cuts, but most Iowans won't see an negative impact on state services, the state's chief budget officer said Thursday.

Complicating matters for the South Dakota state budget will be the unresolved matter of federal sequestration and how federal cuts might require replacement by state funds and how those cuts might affect economic activity.

It is well understood that the federal government must make spending cuts-these cuts will most likely drastically change the amount of federal dollars that are allocated to the states. Unfortunately for most states, dependence on federal funding has continually risen since 2008.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), signed into law on March 23, 2010, made significant changes to the way eligibility for the Medicaid program will be determined and who the program will cover. State governments will play a key role in implementing many aspects of this reform, which must be in place by the beginning of 2014. States will need to address the financial implications of implementing this Medicaid expansion and accompanying enrollment systems.

States will face particularly intense budgetary challenges in education and health care in fiscal 2013, putting pressure on all budget areas - including corrections and infrastructure. As budgets face strain from slow revenue growth and expenditure pressures, states will likely confront tough budgetary choices in the next fiscal year.

The Health Care Compact is an interstate compact - which is really just "an agreement between two or more states that is consented to by Congress" - that would return the authority and the responsibility to regulate health care back to the member states.

Fixing Maine's welfare system requires embracing a Wisconsin-style approach and keeping the system focused on promoting work and self-sufficiency. Maine's current welfare system does just the opposite, trapping people and families in poverty and promoting dependence and an overreliance on government.

South Carolina should refuse federal No Child Left Behind Funds and the accompanying mandates and find a way to fund poor school districts adequately.

In the wake of the failures of the famed "Super Committee," $1.2 trillion in automatic cuts go into effect in 2013, and those cuts will undoubtedly impact state budets.  Although multi-faceted, the problem is clear: states must learn to fend for themselves financially.

Replacing the current federal financing structure of Medicaid with fixed allotments to the states would help save both state and federal budgets. Without this policy change, states will dig further budgetary holes and the federal government will face an increased likelihood of a debt crisis.  If states received a non-fungible Medicaid block grant from the federal government rather than fungible matching funds, each state would have the incentive to reign in Medicaid spending.  If states were freed from the myriad federal mandates (such as the “maintenance of effort” clause of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act) they would gain the ability to run Medicaid efficiently.