Changes could stall state budget

Posted Thursday, May 29, 2003 - 9:09 pm

By Tim Smith
CAPITAL BUREAU

e-mail this story

COLUMBIA – Final passage of the state's $5.3 billion budget may not come before Tuesday, after senators discovered Thursday that some changes by budget negotiators may have been done improperly.

The changes were made during an all-night negotiating session Wednesday evening.

Three senators and three House members spent 11 hours Wednesday night before reaching an agreement that was later approved by the House Thursday morning.

House leaders had hoped the Senate could quickly approve the plan to send it to Gov. Mark Sanford before midnight, which they said would give lawmakers enough time to deal with his vetoes before the Legislature's planned adjournment next Thursday.

But senators reviewing the negotiated budget Thursday afternoon discovered changes had been made that were not part of either body's original plan, something that is not allowed unless both bodies vote beforehand to grant more authority to their negotiators. House members had already gone home by the time the objections were raised.

Rep. Robert Harrell, R-Charleston and chairman of the House budget-writing committee, told senators that such changes had been done in past budget negotiations. But Senate Democrats said such changes require that the full House vote to give their negotiators "free conference" powers.

The budget bill includes more than $100 million in one-time federal money that will be used to fund a shortfall in Medicaid and provide $20 million of added aid to education. Democrats say the budget still leaves a huge shortfall in education programs which could translate to teacher layoffs.

The negotiated budget also includes a $25 fee on traffic tickets, a measure inserted by the House and initially removed by the Senate.

Senate Majority Leader Hugh Leatherman told senators Thursday afternoon the negotiated budget plan is a "horrible budget," but he said it was still a better version than the Senate's.

"We did the best we could with what we could," he said.

A plan by Sanford to provide additional revenue for education and health needs by raising cigarette taxes and reducing the state's income tax rate has stalled in the Senate, where some Republicans object to any tax increase and Democrats say they are leary of granting tax reductions.

Sanford has threatened to veto any cigarette tax increase without his tax reduction plan attached.

Monday, June 02