CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The House of Delegates passed 69-30 a $4.225 billion budget bill that would cut state programs but aims to move enough reserves around to limit the cuts.
A budget bill the state Senate passed on a party-line 22-12 vote on Tuesday night cut $33 million in state funding from the higher education system and $34 million in Medicaid funding. The Medicaid funding is subject to a 3-to-1 federal match, so that’s a $136 million overall cut to available healthcare funding.
The House bill has about $15 million in cuts for higher education and it uses a variety of diverted funding and surpluses to preserve funding for Medicaid. A $12 million portion would come from a reserve in the state Senate.
“Live within your means,” advised House Finance Chairman Eric Nelson, echoing a phrase that his Republican colleagues sometimes use to describe budget necessities.
The House bill was amended into what the Senate passed the prior evening, and the Senate was reconvening at 5:30 p.m. to discuss it. It was most likely that the Senate would vote on the latest budget package at its 11 a.m. Thursday floor session.
The state is up against deadline to have a new budget in place by the new fiscal year, July 1.
Describing the House’s approach on the floor, Nelson said for a variety of reasons some possible revenue increases had failed — most notably a conference committee considering a package estimated to raise an additional $65 million while providing income tax breaks on veterans retirement and Social Security income.
So, Nelson said what was left was limited cuts and shifting money around.
The House bill does cut a net $8 million from the state Board of Education and another $6.9 million from a variety of educational programs to provide money for higher education. The bill also reduces the Medicaid line item by $20 million to provide money for higher education, making up for much of the Medicaid money through other means.
“Two big areas: The Senate’s budget had $20 million to $25 million extra in higher ed cuts, which equated to double digit, 10 percent plus. Our cuts in the House: 2 percent across-the-board and a little bit for the two bigger universities,” said Nelson, R-Kanawha, referring to West Virginia and Marshall universities.
“The other big component was the medical services line item in DHHR. The Senate had a $35 million cut. Ours was below that. It was in the $25 million range. But ours was structured so we would use potential surplus balances that would be created or generate out of excess lottery and the general fund, such that these surpluses that would happen would be cash that would be immediately funded into Medicaid.
“The primary purpose of this was to give certainty so that Medicaid expenditures to our providers, our doctors and hospitals would be paid on a timely basis and not be subject to cuts and missing out on the three times match.”
Nelson said he has some optimism that the Senate will agree to the House plan.
“Gosh, I’m hopeful that the Senate would come around,” Nelson said.
“June 30 is upon us. Let’s get this thing signed and to the governor so there’s certainty for the citizens of West Virginia.”
Across the board, delegates said this was not their vision of a perfect budget bill. Some said they would vote for it anyway. Some said they would not.
Delegate Brent Boggs, D-Braxton, compared the Senate bill and the House bill to “mutually-assured destruction,” a Cold War term having to do with the likelihood of a nuclear exchange.
“Make no mistake we’re in a mutually assured destruction situation,” Boggs said. “You have two bad choices.”
Boggs wrapped up his remarks by concluding, “So with this ringing endorsement of this plan out of the House, it is the best of all bad options.”
Delegate Cindy Frich, a Republican from Monongalia County who frequently discusses how votes might affect West Virginia University, said she can’t take the Senate plan and its effects on the state’s colleges and universities.
“I don’t believe I could possibly vote for the Senate budget as it is,” Frich said.
“I hate what the Senate budget does to higher education.”
Delegate Isaac Sponaugle said he would be voting against the plan. He said the Legislature finds itself in this situation after being unable to pass other revenue measures or to even make targeted cuts.
Sponaugle, D-Pendleton, laid most blame on Republicans in the Senate. He said the best example was when Senate Republicans on a conference committee did not sign the committee’s report.
Sponaugle, in his floor speech, charged that the Senate Republicans wanted income tax cuts so badly they “got butthurt” and took a pass on the roughly $65 million in new revenue the conference report might have offered.
A variation on that sentiment was expressed by House Majority Leader Daryl Cowles, who said the pace picked up in the special session once Senate Republicans appeared to give up on income tax reductions.
“Bing, bang, boom. Serious budget movement as soon as the Senate and the governor decided there wasn’t momentum for the income tax cuts,” said Cowles, R-Morgan.
Delegate Marshall Wilson said the budget under discussion in the House let him down.
“I’m very disappointed in this budget. The cuts are nowhere deep enough for me,” said Wilson, R-Berkeley.
Delegate Mike Pushkin asked Wilson what more he would propose to cut.
Pushkin: Where exactly would you like to cut deeper?
Wilson: “I think we’re spending too much on higher education, frankly.”
Wilson later added that he would like to cut the Courtesy Patrol, the Women’s Commission and deeper cuts into bureaucracy. The first two together amount to about $5 million.