41.   Industry and public officials were quick to caution that the state still faces summer blackouts and that many factors could send prices spiraling higher again.

42.   Like some of its midwestern neighbors, the state is facing a labor shortage that could stifle its economy as much as any cyclical slump in the auto industry.

43.   Many states have faced similar problems with their Medicaid programs.

44.   Many states would face severe cutbacks.

45.   Most states have faced lawsuits over financial equity.

46.   Mulloney of the Massachusetts Biotech Council agreed, adding that the state will also face increasing competition from smaller biotech hubs such as North Carolina and Maryland.

47.   Now, Widmer said, the state faces a more serious fiscal crisis, and Swift has not engaged legislators publicly.

48.   Now all three states are facing crushing deficits and may have to close parks, delay road construction, close hospitals and reduce police officers in rural areas.

49.   Now the state is facing a sharp decline in revenue and sliding into an economic downturn that some economists say could be deeper than that elsewhere in the country.

50.   Now these states may face the prospect of power shortages as well.