State and Local Officials Expect to Go from Bad to Worse as a Result of Debt Deal

Signmakers thrive in anemic economy.

States and Cities Brace for Less Federal Money.   (The New York Times, 8/1/2011)

Excerpt:   Mayors, governors and state lawmakers spent Monday trying to measure how much the deficit deal might cost them in aid, a frustrating task given the fact that many of the details of the reductions in federal spending will not be known until later in the year. But there was no doubt that local governments, many of which have endured several years of brutal budget cuts, were facing even more tough times ahead.