(Columbia) May 13, 2003 - Some legislators say an extended session seems unavoidable as senators continue to debate the $5.2 billion spending plan. An extended legislative session would cost taxpayers $25,000 a day as other state agencies are still trying to cut almost nine percent from their budgets to wrap up the current fiscal year.

The Senate is expected to take the whole week to wrap up its work, leaving only three weeks for the House and Senate to work out differences in conference committe before mandatory June 5th adjournment.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Hugh Leatherman says it usually takes about two weeks for a conference committee to do that. Leatherman says it could take longer this year. Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell says the chamber could finish by the June 5th adjournment, but that would leave no time to deal with vetoes.

House Speaker David Wilkins says an extended session appears to be a sure thing now, "It is expensive, and money is tight, and I do not want to extend the session, but if we don't have a budget that would the one reason to ask the body to extend the session."

Wilkins says usually House members have the budget back by now. Democrats see tax increases as the only alternative, and Republicans see even more cuts in state spending. Legislators are faced with unpopular choices either way.

Both the House and Senate have a Republican majority and party leaders in both those bodies say Senate Democrats are slowing the process. The budget has been out of the House since March 18th.

Democrats like Richland Senator Darrell Jackson say a proposed spending plan cuts too much, in particular from schools and ignores even temporary tax increases, "We have cut not down to the bone, we've cut down to the blood vessel. And literally if we cut any more, this state will suffer damages that we may not ever recover from."

Sen. Tom Moore (R) Aiken, wants to see the Democrats' proposal, "If they're going to say no to every new revenue measure, if they're going to say no to any temporary situation, then the order of the day is, tell us what cuts are going to be made and so far that's been avoided like SARS."

House Ways and Means Chairman Bobby Harrell (R) Charleston, says Sen. Hugh Leatherman (R) Florence, has tried to begin a debate on a Senate Finance Committee budget bill, "You've got a lot of obstructionism that's going on over in the senate right now. You've got Senate Democrats just determined not to allow the leadership over there to get to votes."

Rep. Harrell says to local leaders who complain the legislature is causing them to raise local taxes, "We hear a lot about unfunded mandates. We seldom hear about the unmandated funding. ... Four-and-a-half percent of the revenue comes right off the top and comes to all the cities and counties around the state without strings attached. We just send them the money to operate the budget."

He says the General Assembly is in the same position as local governments in terms of being forced to cut budgets, "Local governments need to make a decision. Do they want to raise taxes or do they want to reduce spending. At the General Assembly level in Columbia we made a decision to reduce spending and that's what we're doing."

Despite the lingering budget crisis, lawmakers have been able to find $4.1 million to fund projects in the districts. Seven projects have received more than $100,000 in state funding through the state Department of Health and Environmental Control's budget for the fiscal year that ends next month.

By Jack Kuenzie
Updated 6:18pm by BrettWitt with AP