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Senate Bill 1 |
Senate Author: Nelson |
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Effective: See below |
House Sponsor: Bonnen |
Senate Bill 1, the General Appropriations Act, as passed by the legislature, appropriated approximately $248.6 billion for the 2022‑2023 state fiscal biennium. However, following the regular session, the governor exercised his line‑item veto authority to veto most of Article X of the bill, which provided funding for the legislative branch of state government. As a result of the veto, only roughly $248.1 billion of those appropriations ultimately became law as part of the biennial state budget, of which $126.1 billion is for state fiscal year 2022 and $122 billion is for state fiscal year 2023. Those amounts include all funding sources except interagency contracts. Of the total amount appropriated, more than $122.2 billion, or roughly 49 percent, is derived from general revenue, both dedicated and nondedicated. Another $84.8 billion, or 34.2 percent, represents federal funding, while the remaining $41.1 billion, or 16.5 percent, comes from other funds such as the State Highway Fund and the Economic Stabilization Fund, otherwise known as the state's Rainy Day Fund. (Figures and percentages may not add up due to rounding.) The $248.1 billion budgetary total represents a decrease of approximately one percent over the budget approved for the 2020‑2021 state fiscal biennium.
Legislative appropriations for major governmental functions and services for the 2022‑2023 state fiscal biennium compared with appropriations for the preceding biennium are as follows, listed by budgetary article, excluding Article X:
· Article I ‑ General Government receives $6.9 billion, a decrease of 6.8 percent;
· Article II ‑ Health and Human Services receives $86.7 billion, an increase of 2.7 percent;
· Article III ‑ Agencies of Education receives $93.5 billion, an increase of 12.7 percent;
· Article IV ‑ The Judiciary receives $928.2 million, an increase of 4 percent;
· Article V ‑ Public Safety and Criminal Justice receives $12.9 billion, a decrease of 19.4 percent;
· Article VI ‑ Natural Resources receives $7.5 billion, a decrease of 16.7 percent;
· Article VII ‑ Business and Economic Development receives $36.5 billion, a decrease of 1.6 percent;
· Article VIII ‑ Regulatory receives $728 million, an increase of 12.4 percent; and
· Article IX ‑ General Provisions receives $2.4 billion, a decrease of 79.7 percent.
Article IX also contains the state employee position classification plan and salary schedule for the 2022‑2023 biennium.
Except for Article X, which does not take effect due to the governor's veto, Senate Bill 1 takes effect September 1, 2021.
Governor's Reason for Veto of most of Article X: "Texans don't run from a legislative fight, and they don't walk away from unfinished business. Funding should not be provided for those who quit their job early, leaving their state with unfinished business and exposing taxpayers to higher costs for an additional legislative session. I therefore object to and disapprove of these appropriations."