DALLAS — The Kansas House has approved a plan that resolves a revenue shortfall in fiscal 2011 by cutting state aid to local school districts and reducing salaries for some government executives.
HB 2014, which was sent to the Senate on Wednesday, would provide a $37.5 million surplus when the fiscal year ends June 30. The cuts in the supplemental budget bill reduce general fund spending in fiscal 2011 by $38 million.
The House budget bill mirrors the cuts requested by Gov. Sam Brownback, with only a few minor changes.
The bill would cut state aid to school districts by 2% and reduce the monthly salaries for the remainder of the fiscal year by 7.5% for legislators, higher-level government employees, and some university employees. The bill cuts pay for agency directors, legislators, state judges, and statewide elected officials. It would also affect 1,400 employees at state colleges and universities who make over $100,000 a year.
House Appropriations chairman Marc Rhoades, R-Newton, said Brownback has reduced his pay by 10% and has asked his staff for a voluntary 10% reduction.
State agency spending would be curtailed by $9.7 million, and $86 million of federal stimulus funds earmarked for preserving teacher positions would be transferred to the general fund. The revisions also include a $49 million boost for social service agencies for increased caseloads.
The revised state budget of $14.8 billion for fiscal 2011 includes $5.7 billion from the general fund.
The supplemental budget bill was passed after four hours of debate in the House. It was the first spending bill using the “pay-go” rules adopted on Monday. The House approved the pay-go measure, proposed by Speaker Mike O’Neal, R-Hutchinson, by 81 to 40.
If lawmakers want to raise the spending contained in a budget bill approved by the Appropriations Committee, the hike must be mitigated by a reduction elsewhere.
O’Neal said the spending stipulation proved its value during debate over the supplemental bill. Without it, he said, there would likely not be a surplus at the end of fiscal 2011. “I am encouraged that the House now has an understanding of how the rule provides budget responsibility and discipline,” O’Neal said.
Using the new requirement, House Rules chairman Clark Shultz, R-Lindborg, ruled out of order an amendment by Rep. Jerry Henry, D-Cummings, to appropriate $16 million for special education.
The state money could be leveraged to obtain up to $25 million a year of federal assistance, according to Henry. Without the matching funds, he said, the state would lose the federal funding.
