LobbyComply Blog

On April 13, Gov. Jim Justice vetoed the budget bill passed by West Virginia lawmakers.

In the latest stunt in the contentious battle among lawmakers on how to address West Virginia’s $500 million budget shortfall, Justice held a press conference to announce the veto complete with props including a platter of bull excrement.

The fiscal year begins July 1 and a special session to pass a budget bill would need to be held prior to that date or the state government will face a shut down.

The special session is expected to be called sometime in late April or early May.

On April 9, the West Virginia Legislature wrapped up its regular legislative session.

The House and Senate passed a spending plan prior to adjournment; however, the governor is expected to veto the bill and call a special session after further negotiations to finalize a more acceptable budget bill.

The fiscal year begins July 1 and a special session would need to be called prior to that date.

Gov. Jim Justice signed a proclamation to extend the legislative session by one day to an adjournment date of April 9. The extension is required by the constitution since the Legislature has not yet passed a budget bill.

More time may be needed for lawmakers to pass a budget as there is little agreement among lawmakers on how to address West Virginia’s $500 million shortfall in the 2018 fiscal year budget.

Both the House and Senate advanced budget bills on Wednesday, April 5; however, Justice indicated he plans to veto either plan that reaches his desk.

An extended session appears likely for West Virginia’s Legislature.

Lawmakers have yet to approve a budget and the regular session is set to adjourn April 8. The state currently faces a $500 million shortfall in the 2018 fiscal year budget and there is little consensus among lawmakers on how to address the deficit.

The constitution requires the Governor to issue a proclamation extending the session if the Legislature has not passed a budget bill by the 57th day of the 60-day regular session. Wednesday, April 5, is the 57th day of the session.

Despite the 2017 regular session adjourning on March 18th, Gov. Susana Martinez will likely call a special session.

Martinez does not like the budget proposed to her by the Legislature and has warned of potential furloughs if a new budget is not passed soon.

The special session date has yet to be determined.

On March 3, the Wyoming Legislature adjourned its 2017 general session.

Lawmakers passed a supplemental budget bill making cuts to education and substance abuse prevention funding.

The budget adjustment was needed due to lower state revenues than previously anticipated.

The 2018 legislative session is scheduled to convene February 12, 2018.

The Virginia General Assembly adjourned the 2017 regular session sine die on Saturday, February 25.

A major focus of the short session was the commonwealth’s biennial budget and several bills supporting second amendment rights received strong support from both sides of the aisle.

A reconvened session is scheduled for April 5, 2017, for lawmakers to consider bills and recommendations returned to them by the governor.

The Louisiana Legislature adjourned a special legislative session on Wednesday, February 22, after approving a deal to close the state’s $304 million budget deficit for the fiscal year ending June 30.

Lawmakers agreed to use $99 million from the state’s rainy day fund, combined with shuffling allocated money and spending cuts across the Department of Education, State Police, and local offices offering mental health and addiction treatment.

Gov. John Bel Edwards stated budget stabilization will be a focus in the coming session. Louisiana’s 2017 regular legislative session is scheduled to convene April 10.

Gov. John Bel Edwards plans to issue a call this week to bring the Louisiana Legislature into a special session to try and close the state’s $304 million deficit.

The special legislative session will run from February 13 to February 23, 2017, but could wrap up earlier if a solution is reached. Edwards met with the joint House and Senate budget committees last Friday and faces no direct challenges to his plan.

He is in favor of using the state’s rainy day fund to bridge the budget gap and has stated there will be no proposals to do so by raising fees and taxes. However, no specifics on where cuts are intended have been announced.

An official list of proposed cuts is to be announced February 6, 2017.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards said on Friday a special session of the legislature is likely necessary to remedy a $313 million deficit in the state’s budget. Gov. Edwards stated last week that any deficit beyond $300 million would automatically trigger a special session as it would exceed the amount he can cut from the budget on his own.

Due to Louisiana’s legal framework, a special session will allow budget cuts to be balanced for agencies across the board while higher education and healthcare would be the target if the cuts are done while the Legislature is not in session. Gov. Edwards is also considering making use of the state’s rainy day fund to close the budget gap. No date for the special session has been set but mid-February is being discussed as the target date.

The Alaska Legislature reached a bipartisan budget deal Tuesday, May 31.

The bill was approved nine days into the special session that was called when lawmakers could not produce a budget during the 121-day regular extended session.

It is unclear whether Gov. Bill Walker will sign the bill. Alaska faces a government shutdown if a budget is not adopted by July 1, and lawmakers were feeling the pressure to approve a budget before June 1 to stop the governor’s administration from sending 30-day layoff warnings to state employees.