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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. --- John Kennedy, Tallahassee bureau chief for the Orlando Sentinel, posted a grim analysis of Fla.'s economic trends Sunday that's perhaps most laudable for its subtlety. "This is a big deal, a very big deal," said economist Chris McCarty at the University of Florida's Bureau of Economic and Business Research. ...In fact, some economists say Florida is teetering close to a recession. They say home values could fall as much as 15 percent this year, sparking a general economic decline. These days economists come in two flavors: pessimist and diet pessimist. University of Central Florida economist Sean Snaith, left, is diet, but with a big squirt of Marie Antoinette syrup: "There's definitely a lot of hot air leaking out of the souffle because of the housing market, but I don't see a recession," said Sean Snaith, [left,] an economist at the University of Central Florida. "Still, it's going to be a couple of years before housing and the economy comes back." In six weeks, Fla. legislators will convene in Tallahassee to cut as much as $1.1 billion from the budget. Most cuts will come from programs funded by $29 billion in general revenue---mostly tax proceeds.

Rank City State 2000 2006 % 1 Lincoln California 11,746 39,566 236.8% 2 Buckeye Arizona 10,147 29,615 191.9% 3 Surprise Arizona 32,342 85,914 165.6% 4 Goodyear Arizona 19,495 47,359 142.9% 5 Plainfield Illinois 13,666 31,968 133.9% 6 Beaumont California 11,549 26,625 130.5% 7 Frisco Texas 35,299 80,499 128.0% 8 Wylie Texas 15,619 32,696 109.3% 9 Avondale Arizona 37,261 75,403 102.4% 10 Woodstock Georgia 10,697 21,482 100.8% 11 Cedar Park Texas 26,926 52,058 93.3% 12 Brentwood California 24,757 47,547 92.1% 13 McKinney Texas 56,087 107,530 91.7% 14 Oswego Illinois 13,814 26,252 90.0% 15 Castle Rock Colorado 20,907 39,682 89.8% 16 Commerce Colorado 21,437 38,887 81.4% 17 Murrieta California 51,678 90,457 75.0% 18 Holly Springs North Carolina 10,017 17,425 74.0% 19 Winter Garden Florida 15,590 27,045 73.5% 20 Wake Forest North Carolina 13,080 22,651 73.2% 21 Rockwall Texas 18,610 32,224 73.2% 22 Sachse Texas 10,257 17,597 71.6% 23 Pflugerville Texas 17,451 29,747 70.5% 24 Gilbert Arizona 112,766 191,517 69.8% 25 Homestead Florida 31,950 53,767 68.3% 26 La Quinta California 24,606 41,328 68.0% 27 Parker Colorado 24,717 41,406 67.5% 28 North Las Vegas Nevada 117,953 197,567 67.5% 29 Romeoville Illinois 22,000 36,837 67.4% 30 Corinth Texas 11,738 19,556 66.6% 31 Newnan Georgia 16,451 <td