It's 1983. Oil prices are in the toilet. The Texas economy is suddenly and unexpectedly reeling. Lawmakers, who happen to be in session, have a choice between big cuts or new taxes. Or they could decide on something creative. Comptroller Bob Bullock and his top propeller-heads find a creative out — a third way to balance the budget. They move up the due dates of the taxes already in place, borrowing from the future by speeding the arrival of money that wouldn't normally have been available until the next budget period.

In another budget crunch a few years later ...

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