The state Senate will have its first shot at debating West Virginia budget priorities, a go-round that’s part of ongoing positioning with the House of Delegates and the governor.
The budget bill, Senate Bill 300, is on the Senate Finance Committee’s agenda for about 3 p.m. Thursday.
Rollan Roberts, the vice chairman of Senate Finance, said this week on “Radio Roundtable” on Beckley’s WJLS that it’s not his role to reveal in advance what that version of the budget will entail.
“So all I can say is it has been reported that the legislative budgets are going to look quite different than the governor’s budget,” said Roberts, R-Raleigh.
“Now, we did have some extensive meetings yesterday with him, with the governor, and so there’s, you know, discussion points going on, but I think you’re going to be able to see there’s going to have to be some negotiations.”
Versions of the budget will likely bounce back and forth over the next week and a half, leading up to the regular session’s conclusion on April 12.
When the regular legislative session began, Gov. Patrick Morrisey and his representatives provided a revenue estimate for the coming fiscal year of $5.323 billion and proposed a general revenue budget that spent that same amount.
Over all of the talk of West Virginia’s finances, the question of federal money has loomed. That’s an area of uncertainty because of federal actions in areas like education and healthcare.
“I will tell you, there’s a cloud hanging over us,” Roberts said on Beckley radio.
“West Virginia is is as dependent on federal money as any state in the nation, and, you know, we’re one of the top two or three, and if they cut any programs — that can affect us.”
As an example, Roberts cited Medicaid, traditionally the health insurance program for the poor that has been expanded to include other lower-income populations.
“If hey drop that, that kind of stuff,” he said, referring to Medicaid expansion, “then we don’t have the money to be able to resolve that problem. No state will have the money to be able to do that.”
Right now, Roberts said, the state has to use the financial information it has currently.
But he acknowledged the situation could change.
“What we’re going to do is we have to go with what numbers we have and what is presently on our plate,” he said.
“And I can give you two words that if there are a bunch of changes that are going to affect West Virginia’s budget in some way or another or our people then the two words are ‘special session.'”
The senator suggested that special legislative sessions are already a possibility.
Governor Morrisey posted a message on social media about a week ago saying, “The more work the Legislature gets done now, the less time it will spend in Charleston during the long, hot summer.”
Roberts said “the governor’s already announced some things that he wants to do. He wants to have a special session for the school funding formula, and then he wants to have a special session for PEIA. We may be in special sessions the rest of the year.”
The House of Delegates kicked off its version of the budget proposal earlier this week.
The House Finance Committee on Monday proposed base spending of $5.127 billion along with the possibility of an additional $128.75 million in surplus spending if the money is there at the conclusion of the current fiscal year.
House Finance Chairman Vernon Criss, R-Wood, anticipates full House of Delegates consideration of that version of the budget bill on Friday.
Eventually, the House and Senate bills will line up.
“I think we’re pretty close,” Criss said this week on MetroNews’ “Talkline.”
“We’ve had some conversations. Obviously they have some other issues that they’re looking at, and they want to make sure those things are taken care of. We have some issues over here. It’s a give and take operation.”