Seven States are Days Away from Blowing Budget Deadlines

Seven states are two days away from blowing a Saturday deadline for adopting a fiscal 2013 budget.

In three of the states — Illinois, New Jersey and North Carolina — legislatures have approved budgets. For the spending plans to come into effect the governors now have to approve the budgets.

However, as of Thursday morning four states did not even have a legislature-approved budget. Wrangling and debating was continuing to a greater or lesser degree in the four states: Delaware, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.

“It’s fairly standard to have some states that haven’t finalized yet,” said Brian Sigritz, director of state fiscal studies at the National Association of State Budget Officers. This year’s crop of stragglers is fewer than what had been the case in June 2009, he said.

In Delaware a Senate budget bill was scheduled for a debate and vote on Wednesday. The state also is supposed to pass a capital budget before Sunday.

“Even in his first year, when the governor inherited the largest budget shortfalls in state history, Delaware delivered its operating and capital budgets on time and balanced,” said Brian Selander, spokesman for Gov. Jack Markell. “That will not change this year.”

In Massachusetts, a House and Senate conference committee has been working to reconcile two versions of a $32 billion budget. Once completed, the chambers will vote on the plan without a chance to amend it.

When it is approved Gov. Deval Patrick will have 10 days to review it and make vetoes.

The state’s legislators have already approved a $1.25 billion interim budget to keep the state government working if the Saturday deadline is missed.

Massachusetts has a separate five-year capital budget that is already in place.

Pennsylvania Republican Gov. Tom Corbett last week reached a deal with GOP members of the legislature on a framework for the budget.

By Wednesday afternoon the House Appropriations Committee had approved the budget, said Eric Shirk, a spokesman for Corbett. The budget was being debated on the House floor and could be amended.

“We still believe that we’ll have a budget by [Sunday],” Shirk said. If that doesn’t happen, the legislature will likely pass a “bridge” budget.

As for why the state has not yet adopted a budget, Shirk said, “The nature of the thing is that it just takes time.”

On Thursday the South Carolina House passed a budget but the Senate had not. Once lawmakers passed a budget, Gov. Nikki Haley has five days, excluding Sundays and holidays, to issue vetoes.

The legislature has sent the governor a continuing resolution maintaining current spending levels into the new fiscal year.

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