Gov. Joe Manchin recently outlined his plans for the budget to the state Board of Education. He painted a grim picture, saying the state could face serious budget shortfalls in the near future if the economy doesn't turn around.

In fact, West Virginia could need to tap into its rainy day fund by 2013 if conditions don't improve. Still, state officials noted 2013 is a relatively long way away in budgetary terms, and the Mountain State is in far better shape than many states, which already are tapping into their reserves or are out of money.

"There are no plans to use rainy day funds until all other methods are exhausted," state Budget Director Mike McKown said.

Public education makes up the largest chunk of the state budget, with only health and human services coming close in terms of spending. When combined with higher education, more than half of state dollars go to colleges or schools, so it is only a small exaggeration to say the primary business of state government is funding education.

Local school districts combine what they get from the state with revenue from local taxpayers and federal funds, the latter usually can only be used for specific purposes. Manchin, in his proposed cuts, is targeting state funding that helps pay teacher and other school employee salaries.

However, the state is using federal stimulus funds to fill in those holes, so there will be no real cuts. And Manchin is proposing 4 percent cuts for public education while the rest of state government is being asked to cut expenses 5 percent.

"I think the governor is being wise with the use of this stabilization money and using it prudently so we can try to ride out this economy and the downturn," Superintendent of Schools Steven Paine said.

The federal stimulus bill could mean a windfall for many public schools, given that it directs a large chunk of money for programs. But that funding might only be one-time, meaning that if it is used to establish new programs, school districts will be left holding the bills for programs they can't afford.

"We have been very clear to superintendents: if you create new programs, make sure you can sustain those once the dollars go away," Paine said.

The Board of Education submitted its proposed spending plan to the governor's office Sept. 1. Manchin won't unveil details of his proposed budget until his State of the State address in early 2010.