ACP Pubs

Michael Larson

Highway Funding Prospects Tentatively Good Amid State Budget Battle
March 28, 2008

Wisconsin's State Assembly, Senate, and governor are now working to fix a shortfall of about $415 million in the state's 2007-2009 budget. 

The budget, originally due for completion in July, 2007, was passed almost four months late, as the Republican-controlled Assembly, Democrat-controlled Senate, and the governor gave ground grudgingly toward compromises in their respective budget proposals.

After the budget had been passed in October, the legislative fiscal bureau determined that the proposed expenditures would be $650 million more than the state's expected income over the two-year life of the budget.

After a pass of trimmings by state departments, the budget was still about $415 over expected income.

When a proposed state budget exceeds expected income by 5% or more, Wisconsin law requires the Legislature to pass a budget-repair bill that will balance the books.

That repair bill is now being hammered out, apparently with more urgency than the original budget.

The governor's proposed fix included taking $293 million from the transportation budget to help fix shortfalls in the general fund, and replacing some of that money with $190 million of bonding and some federal revenue. 

The budget fixes proposed by the Senate and the Assembly both leave the entire transportation budget intact. 

The final joint budget fix that the Senate and Assembly pass and present to the governor for his approval will likely keep the transportation budget as originally proposed. That's good news for the highway construction industry and its related jobs.

However, Wisconsin law gives the governor incredibly strong veto power, and Governor Doyle's top priorities appear to be education and health care.

What happens to the final proposed budget will be interesting to see. Stay tuned.

What do you think about the state's budgeting process?

Posted by Michael Larson on March 28, 2008 | Comments (0)