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Kentucky General Assembly fails to pass budget

The Kentucky General Assembly adjourned April 15 without passing a new two-year budget, which was the most important bill of the session, according to The Courier-Journal.

Gov. Steve Beshear (D-Ky.) expressed his disappointment, calling it "a moment of abject failure": "The people of this Commonwealth and I are disgusted by the total inability of the General Assembly to reach a budget agreement."

Beshear now will have to call a special session to enact a spending plan before July 1, when the next budget period begins. The special session will cost about $60,000 per day.

When the House proposed a short-term "continuation budget" that directed Beshear to continue to operate state government next fiscal year under this year's spending levels, the Senate refused the proposal. Senate members, including Senate President David Williams (R-Burkesville) believed the budget proposal had major problems and would exacerbate budget issues for fiscal year 2012.

However, House Speaker Greg Stumbo (D-Prestonburg), says the proposal was responsible and would have eliminated the need for a costly special session. He said the House made generous concessions during budget negotiations, but the Senate rejected them.

In the face of the Senate's adjournment, the House passed its continuation budget by a 63-34 vote and planned to send it to the Senate to "let them face the consequences," according to House Speaker Pro Tem Larry Clark (D-Louisville). By the end of the day, the parties were blaming each other for the budget failure.

Beshear says he will call the special session in May. He says the budget must be enacted by June 1 because Kentucky hopes to save tens of millions of dollars by refinancing bonds in June.

4/16/2010