Joint Budget Contemplates the Annual Session

Joint Budget met this morning to discuss how to implement the annual session (Amendment 88) that was passed in the General Election. The Legislative Council had worked on the concept during the interim (after the election) and had a working paper with suggestions. Almost an hour was spent debating and asking questions about the implementation process and a little time was spent on the timing of the fiscal session. For a little while it looked as if the Committee would just accept their recommendations and move on. Thankfully, a motion passed that will bring the discussion back up in three weeks. I think it needs more discussion.

I believe we legislators need to use the annual session to learn and I believe we can do a better job of handling the budget and spending by looking at budgets and appropriations annually. Fiscal sessions will almost certainly be a work in progress as we fine tune it in the next few sessions; that is provided we don't refer out another amendment to undo them (I don't support undoing them).