Newly proposed state budget cuts unveiled Tuesday could permanently trim between $15 million to $30 million into the future.
Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee leaders unveiled state agency responses to their directive to find 1% to 2% in further spending cuts for the current year and going forward.
The 240 pages of documents outline those potential cuts as well as warn lawmakers that the consequences of further rolling back their budgets could have dire consequences.
As previously reported by several news outlets, letters from Idaho State Police, the Idaho Department of Correction and the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare said these cuts pose a risk to public safety and the state’s most vulnerable population.
Those include furloughing each commissioned ISP trooper, as well as the 1,200 people staffing the state’s prisons.
JFAC co-chair, Rep. Josh Tanner (R-Eagle), has said repeatedly he wanted to look at all budgetary possibilities as he works to craft a structurally balanced budget.
“Instead of just more Band-aid style and just hopes and prayers that we’re going to come out of this in a really quick way,” Tanner said Tuesday.
He’s referring to Gov. Brad Little’s spending plan, which largely relies on using interest income and holding off on local road grants for a year to keep the state’s books in the black.
Sen. Scott Grow (R-Eagle), JFAC’s other co-chair, said the legislature must take a conservative approach to the budget considering how much uncertainty there is surrounding how much it’ll cost to conform to federal tax changes.
A bill to adopt those changes passed the House later Tuesday morning.
There was some heartburn among JFAC members, including Rep. James Petzke (R-Meridian).
“If we’re going to take this really broad cut across from everybody and then maybe we’re going to come back in and add some things if we feel they're necessary, I guess I just have a little bit of hesitancy there,” Petzke said.
If JFAC were to add items back to the budget, it would be done through a secondary bill legislatures usually refer to as “enhancement budgets.”
Those proposals are much more heavily scrutinized and many lawmakers have pledged to not support them as a way of tackling what they see as out of control budget growth.
That’s part of what worries Sen. Janie Ward-Engelking (D-Boise).
“These cuts are going to be below the maintenance level for our agencies and that really bothers me because I don’t know that this keeps the lights on,” Ward-Engelking said.
Senate Democratic Leader Melissa Wintrow (D-Boise), who also sits on JFAC, reiterated her push to use some of Idaho’s rainy day funds to smooth out any potential bump in the road. Those reserves sit at well over $1 billion.
Republican leaders, including Gov. Little, have balked at using those funds, saying they should be for emergencies.
JFAC won’t have much time to craft these proposed cuts and will do so behind closed doors and without public input.
“It’ll be our first shot across the bow,” said Grow, noting votes will start to be taken Friday morning.
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