Assembly plans to take up state budget Thursday
June 10, 2009 – Legislative leaders have announced the State Assembly will
begin
debating and voting on the proposed 2009-11 biennial state budget this
week on Thursday, June 11. State Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker
likewise announced plans for the Senate to take up the bill next week, during the third week of
June.
Legislative leaders have said repeatedly they intend to complete action
on the budget by June 30.
On May 29, the Legislature’s Joint Finance Committee
(JFC) completed action on the proposed
state
budget, Assembly Bill 75. The bill as amended by Joint Finance contains
a number of initiatives supported by the State
Bar of
Wisconsin, including expanded financial eligibility for State Public
Defender representation and a significant boost in state funding for
indigent civil legal services.
Because the 2009-11 budget originated
in the Assembly, the bill as amended by JFC must first be debated by
that chamber and then by the Senate. Any differences between the two
versions of the budget must then be resolved before final legislative
approval and review by the governor.
Although legislative leaders have said
they hope to complete the budget by June 30, work on past budgets has
often extended beyond that date. In addition, recent developments may
force legislative leaders to change their plans to complete action on
the budget quickly. Some Democratic members of the Assembly have
announced they are drafting amendments
to make significant changes to the spending
plan. With a slim 52-46 majority and one additional Independent who
occasionally caucuses with the Democrats, leaders are likely to need
every vote they can garner for the package. In the Senate, Democrats
hold a 18-15 majority.
The Legislative Fiscal Bureau’s summary of the proposed state
budget as amended by the Joint Finance Committee can be found online. The actual text of the
JFC-amended state budget can be found here.
Continue to monitor WisBar.org and
visit the State Bar’s Government Relations page
for updated budget information.
Related
articles:
Joint Finance completes budget: the good, the
bad and the ugly –
June 1, 2009
Joint Finance expands SPD eligibility, boosts
indigent civil legal services – May 27, 2009
Governor and legislative leaders outline new
deficit reduction plan – May 22, 2009
State budget crisis
deepens – May 13, 2009
Joint Finance Committee Approves Budget for
Courts, Related Agencies – April 22, 2009
State Bar update on 2009-11 state
budget –
April
8, 2009
State agency briefings address Governor’s
budget proposal – March 25, 2009
Joint Finance Co-Chairs announce public hearing
schedule for budget bill – March 10, 2009
State Bar of Wisconsin responds to Governor
Doyle’s budget – February 25, 2009
State Bar President praises initiatives in
Governor’s budget proposal – February 17, 2009
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