Within 24 hours of receiving a grim revenue forecast, Iowa Gov. Chet Culver has acted decisively in a way that will change Iowa forever.

To be fair, Iowa was going to change forever no matter what Culver did. The state's Revenue Estimating Conference this week forecast a $415 million drop in the taxes and fees paid by Iowans.

Culver could have done nothing and Iowa would begin its slow descent to debt by delaying payments, borrowing recklessly and foisting a bunch of cash-grab gamble, tax and fee schemes on Iowans. In other words, Iowa could have become Illinois.

Culver could have taken half-steps, trimming only enough to offset the latest revenue forecast. That would be about 7.1 percent of state spending, still enough to change the services Iowans have come to expect, but not enough to offset any future revenue shortfalls.

He could have reconvened the legislature to rework the entire budget, bringing back lawmakers, lobbyists and special interests into a contentious scrum that we're confident would still come up short. Besides, lawmakers will have that opportunity in less than three months when the legislature reconvenes in January.

Instead, the governor issued an executive order for across-the-board 10 percent cuts. Since approximately 80 percent of all government costs are personnel, we're certain this will mean fewer social workers, state troopers, highway engineers, court bailiffs and many, many other state-paid workers. That means fewer foster care placements, meth lab busts, water quality inspections, college scholarships and virtually any service provided by state government.

It also will mean larger public school classes, and we can't see how local districts can avoid teacher layoffs, or as an alternative, pay freezes. The governor said he will require districts to spend down reserves before considering any kind of local property tax hike.

We've already heard some hindsighters lamenting woulda, shoulda, coulda. That may be pertinent talk around election time. But today, facing a forecast of 7.1 percent drop in revenues, we support the governor's 10 percent target.