House Republican Leader Kraig Paulsen (R-Hiawatha) today issued a statement on the report of the nonpartisan Legislative Service Agency that the state will not have enough money to cover its bills.

“Democrats in Des Moines have a spending problem. House Republicans offered over $300 million in reasonable cost-saving measures that were not accepted. It’s not surprising that our state’s fiscal house is not in order. The governor just signed the largest amount of spending in Iowa history. It’s time the government get serious about saving taxpayer dollars and not rely on the wallets of hard-working Iowans to balance the budget.”

The comment comes after an LSA analyst predicted Tuesday the state will spend all of the $45 million ending balance legislators anticipated when they adjourned in April.

Gov. Chet Culver has the authority to transfer $50 million from reserve accounts, but it appears likely, based on current numbers, that all of the money in the state of Iowa’s wallet and all of its overdraft protection may not be enough to cover the bills coming due at the end of the fiscal year.

The Cedar Rapids Gazette covered the story here.