They can’t buy you protection against tax increases.

According to Eileen Norcross, writing for the Mercatus Center’s brand-new blog about state and local economic issues, Neighborhood Effects, New York is using its stimulus dollars to plug its budget shortfalls, but it won’t shelter New York taxpayers from tax increases.

Also, stimulus dollars don’t protect taxpayers from lawmakers making the same mistakes over and over again.

Eileen writes: “The same goes for neighboring New Jersey. The stimulus will fill their budget gap, but it will also fund new education programs. New Jersey is also repeating the same mistakes that brought them into bad fiscal straits, such as granting localities a holiday from contributing to the pension fund.”

Read more here.