House OKs, sends state budget to Senate

According to The Associated Press, the Kentucky House of Representatives today passed its version of the state's two year budget by a 78-17 margin. The austere $19.5 billion budget, House Bill 265, calls for 8.4 percent cuts to most agencies.

According to the Lexington Herald-Leader, the budget also rejected a 1.5 percent cost-of-living increase for 200,000 state retirees, which could save the ailing pension fund about $400 million.

The paper also reported the House version  restores about $5 million to the Aging and Independent Living department, which handles programs for the elderly such as Meals on Wheels. That program was scheduled to take an 8.4 percent cut under Beshear's proposal. The House plan also protects the state's county and commonwealth attorneys from cuts, which the governor had proposed reducing by 2.2 percent.

In the spending plan, coal severance money is set aside for Crittenden Fiscal Court to use in the following prescribed manner:

• Animal shelter: Septic system upgrade to comply with Health Department regulations — $60,000 made available in Fiscal Year 2012-13. 
• Marion-Crittenden County Park: Upgrade on lights — $90,000 made available in FY 2012-13.
• Courthouse: Renovations — $100,000 made available in FY 2011-12.
• Fire departments: Equipment — $60,000 made available in FY 2012-13. 
• Emergency operations center: Generator for back-up power — $40,000 made available in FY 2011-12 and required as part of the federal grant agreement that allowed for construction.
• Road department: Equipment upgrades — $50,000 made available in FY 2011-12.

Rep. Mike Cherry (D-Princeton), who voted in favor of the bill, said complete funding for the $400,000 worth of projects listed above is predicated on the re-opening by Sept. 30 of a coal mine in northeast Crittenden County. However, Judge-Executive Perry Newcom said there has been no interest shown by anyone in putting the mine back in service.

"It just kills me that we can’t keep that going. It would definitely help ease the need of or necessity for this tax," Newcom said, pointing to the county's proposed one-percent payroll and net profits tax to generate revenue for ailing county projects such as the ambulance service.

In the the likely event the mine does not begin extracting coal by the end of September, Cherry said only $111,000 will be made available for the six local projects listed in the House version of the budget. No more than the prescribed amount can be spent on any one project.

The biennial budget now goes to the Senate for approval.

"...It will be Sen. Dorsey Ridley’s job to keep (the funding) in the final budget that passes the Senate,” Cherry said.