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(Salt Lake City, KSL News) -- There may be a light at the end of the tunnel in the state's ongoing budget crisis.
The state's chief economist said Utah is one of 10 states whose economic forecast could improve for the next year.
"We think that we have a 65-70 percent chance of hitting our targets this year. So far, the revenues are holding up. They're not as good as we would have liked them to be, but they're holding up," says tax commission chief economist Doug Macdonald.
In spite of brighter revenue projections, Utah's budget could spark bitter fights over the governor's water and road subsidy proposals, education funding, and the cost of health and human service programs.
Right now legislators are favoring what they call 'reasonable, across the board cuts' to state agencies. But Governor Leavitt has already said he will fight against any more cuts to education or public safety.
