A panel of fiscal experts met Monday to produce revenue estimates that Nevada lawmakers must follow in preparing the state's budget for the coming two fiscal years.
In developing the estimates, members of the state Economic Forum heard a report from Global Insight, an economic consulting firm, that Nevada's tourism-dependent economy isn't likely to recover before 2010.
The company projected Nevada will lose 48,400 jobs during 2009 and hit an unemployment rate of nearly 9 percent early in 2010 before starting slowly to improve.
The revenue estimate by the Economic Forum, a group of five private business leaders, is binding on the governor and the Legislature in creating state government's fiscal 2009-11 budget.
Two years ago, the forum predicted the state would have about $6.8 billion to spend for the current two-year budget. Based on information given Monday to the forum, the amount available to the state during the next two years could be $1 billion or more below the $6.8 billion figure.