Georgia's revenues took a pounding beginning late last year, but current cuts should carry state departments through until the Legislature convenes in January, Gov. Sonny Perdue said Wednesday.
Then there could be more cuts, said the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.
Mr. Perdue, in Augusta for the groundbreaking of a dental school, said state revenues had been relatively flat toward the end of last year up until the very end.
"Our terrible numbers began in December and accelerated and exacerbated all the way through June," he said. Still, the forecasts officials made seem to be holding, Mr. Perdue said.
"We believe we are on track with current projections," he said. "We believe that the 5 percent holdback that we've asked our people to do will get us through."
Mr. Perdue said he plans to present the Legislature with a budget "that is real, it's implementable, and (we will) not have to make major adjustments again."
That will probably mean some more pain, said Rep. Ben Harbin, R-Evans, who heads the influential House Appropriations Committee.
"I think we are going to see more cuts," he said. "Between the economy and the bank failures we probably still have, I think, six months to a year before we kind of level off."
The problem is there is still turmoil in the banking industry, particularly in the Atlanta area, Mr. Harbin said.
"I think we've still got several banks that are going to go under in the next few months out of Atlanta," he said.
Reach Tom Corwin at (706) 823-3213 or tom.corwin@augustachronicle.com.
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