With the Georgia General Assembly recessed this week for state budget talks and the matter of ethics tucked in committee for the moment, politicos have a chance to catch their breath and contemplate what lies ahead.

No secret to anyone with a pulse, the economy lingers in a recession and leaders struggle to find ways to jumpstart any segment that will get us out of the ditch and on the path to recovery.

Last week, Gov. Sonny Perdue (R) stepped to the podium to deliver the annual State of the State address to an audience filled with legislators awaiting the governor’s expectedly grim proposed budget.

They weren’t disappointed. Georgia has a state budget deficit of $ 1.2 billion and is essentially operating on its budget size from two years ago — only with more people who are using more programs. Georgia, like many other states, was propped up last year by stimulus funding.

The largest chunk of the state’s $17 billion budget funds education. School Board Superintendent Kathy Cox (R) said last week the current budget situation would mean $710 million less in basic school funding for Georgia schools over the next year and a half. Teachers will most likely see furloughs and kids can forget about field trips.

“The governor’s budget is much like his State of the State speech — empty of content, long on rhetorical action and a complete betrayal of education. Like his meandering through the annals of Thomas Paine and misappropriation of great thinkers, his slash and burn of the educational budget will reduce Georgia’s children to academic punch lines for another decade,” as one Democrat legislator told me this week.

State tax collections, the primary source of revenue, began sagging a year ago. These collections typically lag about a year behind, so even after we officially come out of the recession, the pain won’t end for a while.

The good news is Republicans get to do what they’ve always wanted to: shrink the size of government and government programs. The dilemma for many is: what do you cut? This is an election year and hurting kids and poor people is rarely popular.

But then neither is raising taxes — especially with the Tea Party folks breathing down your neck. Even the Democrats are tax squeamish with unemployment rates in double digits.

Budget cuts are, by their nature, contentious. Every program and job, after all, was put in place at the urging of some person or some group and more people grow attached — or dependent — on them over time.

That’s why Perdue demonstrated some interesting tax sleight of hand. His proposed transportation plan, which we might have had last year except for the fighting between him, the House and Senate, will conceptually move forward but the necessary funding is scheduled for 2012. Too afraid of funding this program now, his proposal is to delay the tax increase. Too bad, because businesses looking to relocate to Georgia are eyeing other states that have real transit systems — not one that requires you to own a car to use the system.

Rep. Mark Burkhalter (R-Johns Creek) introduced a tax bill last week that would give developers and existing businesses in the Centennial Park area a tax exemption. The measure allows sales tax generated in the quadrant to be earmarked for public safety. The idea is to encourage more tourism in Atlanta, while addressing crime. The area includes the Georgia World Congress Center,  where Burkhalter had contemplated a position before accepting the London gig.

But whoa, says the downtown group Central Atlanta Progressive — that’s just shifting money around the city, and why would public safety dollars be directed to one area when small businesses in other parts of town are struggling with crime, too?

Also in the political mixer is whether the state will allow cities and counties to collect their own sales taxes, representing an opportunity for governments at all levels to collect additional revenue from existing taxes.

These times call for the statesman in everyone to show up. Our elected officials, on behalf of the constituencies they serve, will be required to make fundamental decisions not only for the immediacy of this year’s budget woes, but also to set Georgia on a course for prosperity when this awful financial mess ends.

There is no budget solution that will make everyone happy. A three-month dance to balance the state begins now. Keep your eye on the ball.