On the surface, some things from the administration’s recent budget presentation made it look to the casual observer that it was not as bad as expected. The cut to higher education, while huge at more than $200 million, was not as much as some were predicting.

It’s not easy being an elected official for a governmental entity these days at the national, state and local levels. To be sure, things will not change for the better for elected officials in 2015. It might be wise, if you care how your tax dollars are spent, to stay informed and pay attention this year to what these entities are doing.