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11:28 a.m.: Idaho legislative committee reviews proposed cuts
January 14, 2009, 11:28 am
By William L. Spence
of the Tribune
BOISE Before jumping into next years budget, a legislative committee spent this morning reviewing the spending cuts proposed for the current budget.
Last fall, Gov. C.L. (Butch) Otter ordered a 4 percent reduction in general fund spending for fiscal 2009, which ends next June. However, those cuts wont be made permanent until approved by the Legislature.
The Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee, which handles all budget bills, is scheduled to act on the governors proposal Thursday morning. It reviewed the impact of the cuts on various agencies during this mornings meeting. Some highlights:
l Sen. Jeff Siddoway, R-Terreton, replaced Sen. Russell Fulcher on the 20-member committee. Fulcher was recently chosen to the Senate majority caucus chair; by senate rules, he cant have a seat on JFAC and be a member of leadership.
l Richard Burns, a budget analyst for the Legislative Services Office, noted that 300 Idaho prison inmates that were being housed in Texas at a cost of $59 per day were recently returned in-state. Most of them were placed in a warehouse facility the state acquired, he said, adding that we can get by for maybe 18 months before were taken to court over that.
l The state agricultural research and extension service is handling the fiscal 2009 budget cuts by keeping 25-30 vacant positions open.
l The State Tax Commission laid off 63 year-round temporary employees, including 50 who worked in the audit and collections department, which is responsible for making sure people pay the right amount in taxes. Given that the state is hurting for money, some people have questioned this move; however, none of the JFAC members asked about it.
l Matt Freeman, the higher education analyst, noted that Idaho colleges and universities will likely have to raise student tuition and fees to replace some of the general fund revenue theyre losing. General fund money currently makes up about a third of their overall budgets. Sen. Siddoway asked whether this would mean larger class sizes, fewer classes and/or fewer students. Most likely, yes, Freeman said. There may be some program eliminations or fewer class offerings, so it could take some students longer to graduate. Together with the fee increases, that will raise the cost of education. Rep. Maxine Bell, R-Jerome, the co-chair of the committee, said colleges and universities now have the same opportunity all other agencies have to refine their mission.
l Amy Castro, the analyst for health and welfare, said about a quarter of the 09 cuts in that department came in one-time cost savings. The 2010 budget, she said, will focus more on curtailing specific programs. Asked about a planned reduction in Medicaid reimbursements, she said hospitals around the state will get about $23.4 million less from the state because of the 09 cuts. Eventually, they may have to make up that revenue by charging higher rates, meaning the cost will be passed on to private individuals or insurance companies.
l The Idaho School for the Deaf and Blind is losing about $336,000 in general fund revenue. Unlike public schools, Otter declined to use savings to offset the impact. He was asked about this during a news conference last fall, but offered no explanation. Budget analyst Paul Headlee said about 20 percent of the money will come through reducing teacher preparedness and innovativeness by reducing curriculum development expenditures.
Spence may be contacted at bspence@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2274.
