COLUMBIA--The first draft of the state's $5.3 billion spending bill was placed atop House members' desks Tuesday, a not-so-subtle reminder of the required homework due before next week's budget debate begins.
The 501-page white booklet, hammered out since November, was passed by the House Ways and Means Committee on Feb. 19. House members have the rest of this week to familiarize themselves with its fine print before the budget is introduced on the floor.
Budget battles are legendary around the Statehouse. Lawmakers grimace when reminded of floor debates that raged until midnight.
Many representatives predict this year will be different. After three brutal budget years, the state has precious little money to argue over.
"You can't fight over what you don't have," said state Rep. John Graham Altman III, R-Charleston. "I suspect the people who will give long speeches next week will be the ones who just like giving long speeches."
But House Minority Leader James Smith, D-Columbia, said, "There will be some serious debating about this budget. A lot of us are not happy with what we are seeing."
Using Gov. Mark Sanford's executive budget as a starting point, budget writers pieced together a bill that accounts for the state's $350 million deficit through targeted cuts and by reducing state annualizations to below $100 million. Annualizations are one-time monies used to fund continuing programs, a practice the governor and certain legislators have long opposed. Four years ago, annualizations topped $500 million.
"Our goal with this budget was to properly fund K-12 education, colleges and health care," said House Ways and Means Chairman Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston. "Everyone else has to live with what's left."
The state budget is actually about $15.4 billion, $5.3 billion of which is state money. The proposed budget reduces base appropriations to state agencies by $90 million, replacing them with $90 million in one-time funds.
"We are effectively putting agencies on notice that this money will be gone next year," Harrell said. "That way they can begin to whittle down their budgets to reach the level we set this year."
The funding for the proviso comes from a plan proposed by South Carolina Department of Revenue Director Burnie Maybank. Earlier this year Maybank guaranteed legislators that if they gave him $10 million to hire 110 new auditors, collectors and staff members, he would bring in $90 million in additional tax money.
Despite Maybank's assurances, there is no guarantee the money will be there when needed. Harrell said such an outcome has been accounted for. Agencies will receive a proportionate amount of whatever is collected in that fund, based on what they're earmarked to receive now.
Committee members were able to avoid major cuts to agencies by calling for a massive sale of state assets and moving agencies around, among other budgetary maneuvers. The moves allowed them to save almost $380 million, some of which would go toward a small raise for state employees.
One plan that went awry dealt with phasing out a worker's compensation fund. House leaders wanted to take $40 million from the $136 million fund, leaving $96 million to deal with cases that are grandfathered in.
Powerful opposition from the business community ultimately led House leaders to drop that plan.
"We didn't think this was a fight we should put the House through," Harrell said. "The result is we will have to cut a little more from areas outside K-12 education, colleges and health care."
State Rep. David Mack, D-North Charleston, said that while he thinks next week's debate will be relatively mild, there are still the key issues of education and health care to consider.
"They are always good for some heated exchanges," he said.
Like Harrell, Smith considers K-12 education, colleges and health care the primary issues this year. Unlike Harrell, Smith thinks the budget's architects have failed to properly fund these areas.
"This budget is all smoke and mirrors," he said. "They are moving money around from one spot to another to make it look like they are doing something and I'm not buying it."
In particular Smith said the proposed budget funds Medicaid at $180 million.
"That is not fully funding Medicaid," he said. "Originally the agency asked for $260 million to $280 million."
Smith also has a problem with education funding.
According to the budget, the Education Department loses $4.3 million from its base budget and administrative operations.
Harrell said the committee's proposal gives $45 million more to K-12 education, special schools and colleges than was laid out in the governor's budget and was as good as the members could do in this tight budget year.
