Like a bad cold Maryland can’t shake, big deficits are part of the state’s fiscal future for the next six years, even if slots revenue kicks in, Warren Deschenaux, the legislature’s fiscal guru, told lawmakers in Annapolis.

“We’re still kissing a billion dollars” in fiscal 2014, Deschenaux said late Tuesday.  “I don’t think we understand completely the direction of the economy. I think there’s a strong likelihood that strong action will need to be taken.”