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SALT LAKE CITY — New projections released Tuesday giving lawmakers another $14 million to spend this session fell short of some expectations.
"Disappointing," was how Senate Majority Leader Scott Jenkins, R-Plain City, summed up the additional $9 million in ongoing revenues and $5 million in one-time monies available to the 2012 Legislature.
"It's so little you can't see it," Jenkins said. "We had hoped for a little bit extra in the hopper so we had some dough to work with."
It's so little you can't see it. We had hoped for a little bit extra in the hopper so we had some dough to work with.
–Senate Majority Leader Scott Jenkins
#jenkins_quote
The state was already expecting $280 million in revenue growth in the new budget year that begins July 1, and a $128 million surplus in the current budget year, based on estimates made last fall.
While no one is complaining about having even more cash, there is concern it isn't enough to cover some items lawmakers hoped to fund, a shortfall Jenkins said adds up to some $50 million.
"That's a big number," Jenkins said. "This is an issue. I'm not really sure what we're going to do."
Caught in the shortfall is a 1 percent pay raise for higher education employees, Jenkins said, but not similar salary hikes for state workers and public school teachers recommended in Gov. Gary Herbert's nearly $13 billion budget.
Even so, lobbyists for government employees sounded worried.
"I'm a little nervous that they're going to have less enthusiasm," said Kory Holdaway, government relations director for the Utah Education Association.
Holdaway said the association is focused on securing the money needed to cover enrollment growth in public schools as well as a pay increase for teachers and other employees.
Related:
UTA may lack funds to operate expansions, audit shows
UTA may not have the needed funding to operate the light rail and commuter rail extensions that are currently under construction, according to a legislative audit."We're still hopeful the Legislature will continue to prioritize education as they said they planned to, recognizing that there may not be as much funding available," he said.
During an Executive Appropriations Committee meeting Tuesday night, Senate Minority Leader Ross Romero, D-Salt Lake, said the higher education budget subcommittee put giving a pay increase at the the top of their list.
"We all recognize the value they've been bringing and the extra burden they've been asked to bear," Romero said.
The Executive Appropriations Committee accepted the new revenue numbers without debate and is expected to make recommendations on budget priorities on Wednesday.
The governor, who is emphasizing the strength of the state's economy in his reelection campaign, said in a statement that the new numbers simply show the earlier forecast was sound.
"Utah's economy is still growing, and while we clearly still have work to do and jobs to grow, our forecasts are holding and this state continues to lead the nation out of the Great Recession," Herbert said.
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Contributing: John Dalye and Marjorie Cortez
