Rumplestiltskin to the rescue?

Jefferson County has been wrestling mighty budget challenges, with the school board approving cuts of $26 million for 2009-10 last night. The CJ article is here, with this paragraph deserving special note:

Cordelia Hardin, the district's chief financial officer, told the school board that the district still faces a $44 million shortfall in its general fund and will use about $15 million in reserve funds to make up for the rest of the shortfall.

Spending $15 million to cover a $44 million shortfall is mighty close to spinning straw into gold. Here's hoping the governor and the legislature can do as well with the $1 billion state level challenge.