Lawmakers Near State Budget Agreement

The House and Senate each passed its own version of a $28 billion dollar state budget last night. There are now only minor differences to work out today. The two houses have to agree on the exact wording before they can send the bill to the governor for his signature.

The budget reduces the sales tax on food by 1/2 %, and adds $290 million dollars to fund changes to the way the state funds education, including more money to educate at-risk and English language learners. It also builds up the Rainy Day Fund and raises state employees’ pay by 3%.

House Finance Chairman and democrat, Craig Fitzhugh.

“It’s a sound budget and it makes some good expenditures based on fiscally responsible means, and I think that’s why our members, at least, stuck with it.”

In the senate, the budget passed also, though Nashville Democrat Douglas Henry was one of only two senators that didn’t vote for the food sales tax reduction.

“Unpleasant as it is, the sales tax on food is the most stable tax on the books. When you start whittling away on the sales tax, you’re walking down the road to an income tax. There’s no two ways about it, don’t act like it doesn’t happen that way, it does.”

Nashville democrat Joe Haynes joined Henry in opposing the bill.

The budget also includes $250 million dollars that over two years will increase the state’s rainy day fund to over three-quarters of a billion dollars. Not everyone was happy about that since it required legislators to vote to exceed its constitutionally mandated spending cap.

Called the ‘Copeland Cap’ after a former representative in the 1970s, it limits spending to the growth in personal income. Brentwood Republican Jack Johnson says he couldn’t vote for the budget.

“I understand it’s kind of an unusual year with money going into the Rainy Day fund, but bottom line, we’re still increasing the growth of government and the rate of government spending at a pretty phenomenal rate and I was uncomfortable with that.”

The budget passed the Senate 28-to-3 and the House 87-to-8.

Joe White contributed to this report.