The State Senate passed the $11.162 billion Supplemental Budget bill (HB 2012 HD1 SD1) 24 to 1 during the crossover voting session held in the State Capitol on Tuesday, April 10.
Senator Slom was the lone dissenting vote on the budget saying that there should be cuts in spending.
The House Draft of the State Budget shows that several areas take up whopping amounts of funding of nearly or more than $2 billion each — Dept. of Education ($1.824 Billion), Dept. of Human Services ($2.3 billion), Dept. of Health ($1.5 billion) and the Dept. of Budget & Finance ($1.82 billion), from which the Employeeʼs Retirement System (ERS) and the Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund (EUTF) is administered.
The State Constitution mandates a balanced budget and like last year, this yearʼs budget will not be balanced without mandating cuts in spending or increased taxation, which I oppose.
The latest Council of Revenue projections from March 7 shows an optimistic growth in tax collections of 11.5%. The rosy projection is still short of the 14.5% used when the budget was submitted by the Governor. My office predicts single digit growth in tax revenue.
