Miller: Henry May Be Skirting Spirit Of Law
A House leader on Tuesday said that by failing to provide a new detailed state budget plan, the governor could be skirting the spirit of state law.
"Clearly, the Governor has not complied with the spirit of the law, which requires him to present a balanced budget within the constraints of how much money the state has," said Ken Miller (R-Edmond), chair of the House Appropriations and Budget Committee.
"Balancing the budget with nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars of debt is not good enough. The governor's budget is obsolete. He needs to stop avoiding his responsibilities, and submit a balanced budget."
Even as the governor threatens more vetoes on five individual agency budget bills passed by the Senate last week, Miller pointed out that Henry has failed to submit a balanced budget as required by state law. Title 62, sections 41.33 and 41.34, requires the governor to submit a budget that balances revenues with expenditures, and in the event that expenditures exceed revenues, to present a plan to raise revenue sufficient to cover the additional expenditures. The governor's executive budget submitted in early February does not balance with current revenue estimates. What's more, Miller said, the governor's original budget contained funding for programs that are no longer viable this legislative session - such as an expansion of early childhood education for 3-year-olds.
Weeks ago, the House and Senate passed a $6.9 billion bipartisan state budget in House Bill 1234, a measure the governor vetoed. House Democrats have said they will uphold the governor's veto, even though most of them earlier voted for the plan.
In light of the governor's veto, House and Senate leaders in both parties have called on Henry to submit a new alternative plan with details about what he would do in contrast to the bipartisan plan he killed.
"The governor's gridlock veto games are one thing, but now the governor is just disregarding his duty by refusing to submit a new budget plan," said Miller. He noted that the governor has repeatedly refused to provide specifics about his concerns with the bipartisan budget, although he said he agreed with 90 percent of the plan before he vetoed it. According to Miller, the governor's original executive budget included a billion dollars in new spending backed mostly by hundreds of millions of dollars in new bond debt. And the governor's budget included questionable items such as a 34.1 percent spending increase for the lieutenant governor's office.
"Clearly, the Governor has not complied with the spirit of the law, which requires him to present a balanced budget within the constraints of how much money the state has," said Ken Miller (R-Edmond), chair of the House Appropriations and Budget Committee.
"Balancing the budget with nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars of debt is not good enough. The governor's budget is obsolete. He needs to stop avoiding his responsibilities, and submit a balanced budget."
Even as the governor threatens more vetoes on five individual agency budget bills passed by the Senate last week, Miller pointed out that Henry has failed to submit a balanced budget as required by state law. Title 62, sections 41.33 and 41.34, requires the governor to submit a budget that balances revenues with expenditures, and in the event that expenditures exceed revenues, to present a plan to raise revenue sufficient to cover the additional expenditures. The governor's executive budget submitted in early February does not balance with current revenue estimates. What's more, Miller said, the governor's original budget contained funding for programs that are no longer viable this legislative session - such as an expansion of early childhood education for 3-year-olds.
Weeks ago, the House and Senate passed a $6.9 billion bipartisan state budget in House Bill 1234, a measure the governor vetoed. House Democrats have said they will uphold the governor's veto, even though most of them earlier voted for the plan.
In light of the governor's veto, House and Senate leaders in both parties have called on Henry to submit a new alternative plan with details about what he would do in contrast to the bipartisan plan he killed.
"The governor's gridlock veto games are one thing, but now the governor is just disregarding his duty by refusing to submit a new budget plan," said Miller. He noted that the governor has repeatedly refused to provide specifics about his concerns with the bipartisan budget, although he said he agreed with 90 percent of the plan before he vetoed it. According to Miller, the governor's original executive budget included a billion dollars in new spending backed mostly by hundreds of millions of dollars in new bond debt. And the governor's budget included questionable items such as a 34.1 percent spending increase for the lieutenant governor's office.
Labels: 2007 Legislature, 2008 Budget, Brad Henry, Ken Miller
posted by Mike McCarville @ 9:40 AM
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