Rainy day funds can help a state get through a short period of declining tax receipts. But Gov. Charlie Crist (R-Fla.) wants to use some of those funds to start an expansion of state-paid health care.

The governor would have the state spend $60 million on expanding the Florida KidCare program to another 46,000 children. He expects tax receipts to pick up soon, a risky gamble. But even if he's right, the expansion would be an ongoing demand on the state's taxpayers. Once the program is expanded, do you think it will actually be reduced anytime in the future?

That event is made even more unlikely by the fact that some of the funding for the expansion is picked up by the federal treasury. It's a classic example of the power of the federal match: the media glow from "helping kids" is double what it would be, thanks to taxpayers in other states, while any future $1 cut in state spending brings with it the political scorn that comes from a total decline of $2.

Rep. Aaron Bean, chairman of the House's committee on health care, cautioned against the move. According to the Palm Beach Post:

After the meeting, Bean said of the proposed program: "We're not going to send our mobile unit van to go knock on doors. We're not doing that. Before you take the money out of savings, you look at your spending habits."

Bean said the House is working on its own health insurance proposal using "market-based principles" but declined to elaborate.