Beginning for Fiscal Year 2008, the Senate and the General Assembly instituted new procedures for the Legislature’s consideration of proposals to the State budget as recommended by the Governor. Each year the Legislature, after receiving the Governor’s recommended budget and referring it to each House’s budget committee, makes changes to that proposal that are then reflected in the appropriations bill that is considered by the Legislature. Under the new procedures, the process of considering budget changes is more transparent and provides the public an opportunity to review the change proposals that have been offered to the budget committees.

Members of the Legislature, the State Treasurer for the Executive Branch and the Administrative Office of the Courts for the Judicial Branch have been invited to submit proposed changes to the budget committees through the Legislative Budget and Finance Officer by June 2. Each proposal will comprise a single, distinct policy or budget option. Proposals may entail eliminating, reducing or increasing an appropriation recommended by the Governor, eliminating or changing a language provision recommended by the Governor, adding a new line item or language provision, or modifying a revenue item. In addition, the form for each of the proposals submitted by a legislator contains a section for personal disclosure.

Each of these proposals is now available for public examination. The proposals are searchable by sponsor, department or key word. The Office of Legislative Services has provided a brief descriptive synopsis of each proposal, but the public is able to view the proposal in the form submitted by the sponsor. Technical adjustments or fuller elaborations of the proposal details may be required prior to incorporation in the appropriations bill by the budget committees.