With little discussion, $202 million in additional cuts and none of the normally cherished member amendments, the budget bill moved out of House Appropriations Committee today to set up its consideration by the full House next week. Chairman Jim Fannin, D-Jonesboro, offered more spending reductions spread through the budget to account for: $85.7 million from the sale of prisons, off the table for now; the contingency of a constitutional amendment to dedicate $92 million to TOPS from tobacco settlement payments; and a not-yet passed bill to increase state employees’ retirement contribution. Among the cuts included were some state salaries, travel, supplies and other administrative expenses. No one spoke against the reductions, but Commissioner of Administration Paul Rainwater scheduled an afternoon press conference to explain the problems caused by the amendment. For the first time in many years, the House committee did not offer member amendments to fund items for local governments and nonprofits. Both houses added $30 million in member amendments last year.
Committee members spent much more time debating a supplemental appropriations bill that sweeps $341 million from statutorily dedicated funds for use in the 2011-12 budget. The amount taken from about 50 funds ranged from $60 million from the Self-Insurance Fund to $3 plucked from the General Aviation and Reliever Airport Grant Program Fund. The use of dedicated funds exposes the myth of statutorily protected funds, which are said to be off-limits but can be statutorily unprotected by passage of any appropriations bill. Rep. Brett Geymann, R-Lake Charles, objected to money dedicated from Lake Charles casinos to local schools being swept from the Calcasieu Parish Fund, while Rep. Mert Smiley, R-St. Amant, challenged the taking of $62,000 from the Motorcyle Safety and Training Fund. “This fund saves lives,” Smiley says. Budget official Barry Doucet says the amounts taken were left over after funding requests were met.
(John Maginnis will publish a daily update on the legislative session at 3 p.m., available to LaPolitics Weekly subscribers on the Subscribers Only page at LaPolitics.com. You can register your user name and password on the Lapolitics home page.)
