Budget bill passes, now in the hands of the Governor

By Sara Beth Gregory, 16th District Senator

After working literally through the night, conference committee members were able to reach an agreement on the executive, legislative, and judicial branch budgets. On Monday, March 31, these budget bills were passed by both the House and Senate. By passing these bills on schedule, we were able to preserve our ability to override any potential vetoes by the Governor.

I am proud of the efforts that went into passing a new two-year budget for the Commonwealth that is more fiscally responsible than the original budget proposal. The final budget borrows less money and uses less one-time money to pay recurring expenses than the proposals from the Governor and House. That means both the debt service ratio and structural imbalance are lower.

One of the top priorities in this budget is giving all Kentucky students the opportunity for quality education. The final budget supports Kentucky’s education efforts from preschool to college. The plan will expand the state’s preschool program in 2016, increase K-12 per-pupil (SEEK) funding, and add nearly $10 million for education technology.

The final budget also retained some items that had been included by the Senate, including additional funding for Career and Technical Education to fill vacant teaching positions at vocational schools throughout the state. Also retained were increased funding for college scholarships through the Kentucky Tuition Grants (KTG) and the College Access Program (CAP). This is good news for both students and higher education institutions like Lindsey Wilson College and Campbellsville University in the district I represent.

While some state agencies and programs will face cuts up to five percent in the next biennium, critical areas like Medicaid are protected from reductions. Also, funding for child care subsidies for low-income families will be restored.

The budget also includes pay raises for state employees for the first time since 2008, most of whom are taking home less now than several years ago due to increased insurance cost. The final budget includes raises for public school teachers and judicial branch employees as well.

I received many messages, especially from public library supporters, concerned about a proposal by the Governor that would have required libraries, health departments, and other special taxing districts to pay significant amounts to PVAs for tax collection. I’m pleased to say this was avoided in the final budget by giving some additional general fund support to PVAs instead of placing the entire burden on special districts.

This budget also fully funds the Kentucky Employee Retirement System’s Actuarially Recommended Contribution (ARC), and provides $372.3 million in FY15 and $380.5 million in FY16 for the Kentucky Teachers’ Retirement System employer match for qualified local school district employees.

We also made sure to include language provisions to ensure taxpayer dollars are used responsibly. For example, the budget specifies that no general fund dollars may be used for the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, which has been done without legislative approval with the promise it would be paid for by federal funds. Likewise, funds received as a result of the ACA may not be used to permanently expand or create programs.

The budget and many other bills are now in the hands of the Governor, who must choose whether to sign or veto the measures. The Governor has the authority on budget bills to line-item veto specific provisions if he chooses to do so. When the General Assembly returns to Frankfort on April 14 for the final two days of the session, any vetoes may be overridden by a majority vote of both the House and Senate.

Other legislation awaits final action, including most significantly, the new road plan and transportation budget for the Commonwealth. The road plan is currently being discussed in conference committee as members seek to agree on the infrastructure priorities for the state.

As always, I invite you to contact me with feedback or concerns about legislative issues that interest you. You may contact me in Frankfort at 502-564-8100, or leave a message for me, or other legislators on our toll-free message line at 800-372-7181, or by e-mail at sara.gregory@lrc.ky.gov. More information about the work of the legislature is available on the Legislative Research Commission website, www.lrc.ky.gov, and you may also watch legislative proceedings live online at www.ket.org.