Spring Break
Colorado lawmakers give initial OK to budget cuts
STEVEN K. PAULSON The Associated Press
Issue date: 4/17/09 Section: News
DENVER (AP) - The Colorado House declared a fiscal emergency Thursday and tentatively approved a bipartisan package of bills to cut about $300 million from the state budget to avoid major cuts to higher education.
Lawmakers voted to ask the governor to force state employees to take up to eight furlough days in the fiscal year beginning July 1, cut provider rates for private prisons and medical providers, delay a major water project and raise tobacco taxes.
The budget faces a third reading before it goes back to the Senate for consideration of House amendments.
A two-thirds vote was required to declare a fiscal emergency so lawmakers could tap $30 million from tobacco tax revenues for health-related purposes.
The financial emergency declaration noted that "the national economy and the state's economy have contracted at rates not experienced since the Great Depression."
Lawmakers said strong measures were needed to cope with a projected $1 billion revenue shortfall in the 2009-2010 budget.
Legislative leaders said both sides had to make difficult choices to balance the budget as required by the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights, which mandates voter approval for any tax increases.
"Working together, Democrats and Republicans crafted a sensible budget that protects our schools, keeps the doors to Colorado's colleges open, and will help put Colorado on the road to economic recovery," said House Speaker Terrance Carroll, D-Denver.
Minority Leader Mike May, a Republican from Parker, said, "While we might not agree on how every dollar is saved or spent, we do agree that with the future of the state on the line, it is time to put aside politics and make good policy. This is a balanced budget that tightens our belt and wisely trims the fat off our expenditures."
Among the tough choices was a decision to cut about $90 million from a senior property tax exemption, but lawmakers voted to exempt disabled veterans from the cuts.
Lawmakers voted to ask the governor to force state employees to take up to eight furlough days in the fiscal year beginning July 1, cut provider rates for private prisons and medical providers, delay a major water project and raise tobacco taxes.
The budget faces a third reading before it goes back to the Senate for consideration of House amendments.
A two-thirds vote was required to declare a fiscal emergency so lawmakers could tap $30 million from tobacco tax revenues for health-related purposes.
The financial emergency declaration noted that "the national economy and the state's economy have contracted at rates not experienced since the Great Depression."
Lawmakers said strong measures were needed to cope with a projected $1 billion revenue shortfall in the 2009-2010 budget.
Legislative leaders said both sides had to make difficult choices to balance the budget as required by the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights, which mandates voter approval for any tax increases.
"Working together, Democrats and Republicans crafted a sensible budget that protects our schools, keeps the doors to Colorado's colleges open, and will help put Colorado on the road to economic recovery," said House Speaker Terrance Carroll, D-Denver.
Minority Leader Mike May, a Republican from Parker, said, "While we might not agree on how every dollar is saved or spent, we do agree that with the future of the state on the line, it is time to put aside politics and make good policy. This is a balanced budget that tightens our belt and wisely trims the fat off our expenditures."
Among the tough choices was a decision to cut about $90 million from a senior property tax exemption, but lawmakers voted to exempt disabled veterans from the cuts.
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