Minnesota taxpayers and insurance policyholders may be on the hook for an additional $36 million a year to help prop up three struggling pension funds.

Whether federal bankruptcy law trumps the California law that requires pension fund debts to be honored could have huge implications across the state and the rest of the nation, experts say.

State Comptroller Kevin P. Lembo reported a $91.3 million deficit Monday in the state's chief operating fund, a $40 million improvement from the shortfall the comptroller projected one month ago.

When the Democratic-led House takes up its budget tomorrow, speeches will be made and a half-dozen or more floor amendments will be offered but Republicans - now in the minority - say they don't plan to prolong the debate or delay the vote.

The people of Stockton will feel financial fallout for years after a federal judge ruled Monday to let the city become the most populous in the nation to enter bankruptcy.

State officials have a deep bag of tricks to "solve" budget gaps but they often keep budgets far from being balanced. This consistent habit of kicking the can down the road has put states in their current fiscal catastrophe. Below are some of the gimmicks on which lawmakers rely, and examples of how states have used them.

In attempts to reign in the costs of pensions, state lawmakers legislate pension reform. Challengers to those reforms often bring suit, alleging violations of state law, contracts, and the Constitution.

For the first time, Texas lawmakers risk bumping up against a constitutional ceiling on spending growth. And some see a politically fraught vote to exceed the limit.

GASB rules, Moody's addition could mean headaches for execs.

The $135 billion budget closes a $1.3 billion budget gap and increases spending for schools by more than $1 billion, to roughly $21 billion.