“Most of a $30 million fund for land and soil conservation programs in Tennessee appears likely to fall victim to the state’s budget crunch. Lawmakers confirmed Thursday that they plan to use about $12 million from the fund to help make up for a rejected plan to end a tax exemption for family-owned businesses. Gov. Phil Bredesen has proposed using another $12 million from the pool to help bridge other budget gaps. That real estate transfer tax money is currently spent on wetlands acquisition, local and state parks and soil conservation. The fund is drawn from a 37-cent tax on every $100 of real estate deals. Bredesen’s original budget plan this year had envisioned restoring the fund its full $30 million level after it had been raided for other purposes in previous years. But that was before the extent of the budget shortfall for the upcoming budget year became clear earlier this month.” [editor’s note: Sure, anything’s fair game to avoid CUTTING that bloated budget! - SAT] (05/15/08)