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House Bill 1 |
House Author: Otto |
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Effective: 9-1-15 |
Senate Sponsor: Nelson |
House Bill 1, the General Appropriations Act, appropriates approximately $209.4 billion for the FY2016-FY2017 state fiscal biennium beginning September 1, 2015. That amount includes all funding sources except interagency contracts. Of the legislatively approved amount, more than $114.1 billion, or 54.5 percent, is derived from general revenue, both dedicated and nondedicated. Another $68 billion, or 32.5 percent, represents federal funding, and $27.3 billion, or 13.1 percent, comes from other funds. (Figures and percentages do not add up due to rounding.) The $209.4 billion budgetary total for FY2016-FY2017 represents an increase of approximately 6.3 percent over the FY2014-FY2015 budget.
Legislative appropriations for major governmental functions and services for FY2016‑FY2017 compared with appropriations for the preceding fiscal biennium are as follows: General government receives $6.4 billion, an increase of 34.1 percent. Total funding for health and human services is $77.2 billion, an increase of 4.4 percent. The legislature appropriates $78.4 billion for both public and higher education, a 5.7 percent increase. The judiciary receives $796.8 million, a 9.5 percent increase. Public safety and criminal justice receives $12.4 billion, an increase of 6.9 percent. Natural resources is funded at $4.4 billion, an 8.2 percent decrease. Business and economic development is funded at $27.7 billion, an increase of 11 percent. Regulatory functions are funded at $920.4 million, an increase of 17.3 percent. The legislature is appropriated $385.5 million, an increase of 7.6 percent.
Pursuant to the governor's "line-item" veto authority, the governor objected to a number of items in the General Appropriations Act, House Bill 1, related to a total of approximately $295 million in all funding sources. The items to which the governor objected are provisions making contingent appropriations for bills that did not pass or that were vetoed by the governor and certain other provisions related to appropriations for cultural tourism grants, the construction of certain state buildings and facilities, the jail-based competency restoration pilot program, membership fees to the Southern Regional Education Board, certain colleges and universities, and water conservation education grants. In August 2015, the comptroller of public accounts requested an opinion from the attorney general regarding several issues that had arisen regarding the effect of a number of the governor's objections. As of the date of this publication, the attorney general has not issued a response to the comptroller's questions.