It appears that lawmakers are all but assured to reach a budget deal.

However, we're still taking a cautious view until everything is finalized.

We're encouraged to see that significant progress has been made on not only finalizing a new budget, but figuring out a way to eliminate a $4 billion-plus deficit.

Some are saying that there's only minor tinkering that needs to be done with the budget. That may be the case, but we'll be ready to weigh in further on this issue once it's signed and lawmakers can go home.