Maximum Time Legislature or Committee May Consider the Budget

Legislative Budget Procedures: Deliberation on the Recommended Budget:

Legislative Budget Procedures Executive Summary

Maximum Time Legislature or Committee May Consider the Budget

State or other Jurisdiction	Maximum Number of Weeks Legislature Has to Consider Budget (from time governor submits budget until the end of legislative session)	Maximum Number of Weeks Appropriations/ Finance Committee Has to Consider the Budget
Alabama	15	N/A
Alaska	Varies*	*
Arizona	8–10*	6
Arkansas	24	12
California	20	20*
Colorado	*	*
Connecticut	Odd year–17; even year–13	Odd year–11; even year–7
Delaware	22	6
Florida	9*	15*
Georgia	Varies*	5–6
Hawaii	15	9
Idaho	No limit	No limit
Illinois	No requirement, 16–18	No requirement, 9–14
Indiana	16	House–9, Senate–5, Conf. Committee–2
Iowa	13–15*	*
Kansas	No limit	Varies*
Kentucky	8	5–6
Louisiana	*	4*
Maine	*	*
Maryland	10	5
Massachusetts	26	15–20
Michigan	33*	21*
Minnesota	15–16	15–16*
Mississippi	12–16*	11–15*
Missouri	Varies*	*
Montana	20	11*
Nebraska	Long session–21; Short session–13	Long session–16; Short session–9
Nevada	No limit	No limit
New Hampshire	16–17	Varies
New Jersey	20	16–18*
New Mexico	Odd year–8.6; Even year–4.3	Odd year–7.7; Even year–3.4
New York	10*	10*
North Carolina	No limit	No limit
North Dakota	Varies*	Varies*
Ohio	8–10	8–10
Oklahoma	16	12–14
Oregon	New governor–24; Incumbent–32	New governor–24; Incumbent–26
Pennsylvania	18	18
Rhode Island	No limit	No limit
South Carolina	22*	House–8; Senate–6
South Dakota	12	6–7
Tennessee	12–16*	3
Texas	*	No limit*
Utah	6	5
Vermont	No limit	House 8–10; Senate 10–12
Virginia	Even year–12; Odd year–10*	Even year–9; Odd year–7
Washington	*	*
West Virginia	No limit	No limit
Wisconsin	22*	18
Wyoming	12	10*
American Samoa	---	---
District of Columbia	---	---
Guam	No limit	No limit
Northern Mariana Islands	5 months*	5 months*
Puerto Rico	No limit	No limit
U.S. Virgin Islands	---	---

Source: National Conference of State Legislatures, December 1997.

Key:
--- = Not available
N/A = Not applicable
N/R = No response

*Notes:

Alaska: The budget is to be submitted December 15; the Legislature convenes on the second or third Monday in January; regular session is limited to 120 days. Theoretically, the fiscal committees have the entire session to consider the budget. Recent practice, however, is for the first body to pass the general appropriations bill for the operating budget by the 90th day of the session.

Arizona: The Legislature has a goal of enacting the budget by the 65th day of a 100-day session.

California: Fiscal committees have jurisdiction over budget bills from the time of introduction (January 10) until time of House (floor) action, which is usually early June. The conference committee exercises jurisdiction from time of floor action until the constitutional deadline for budget bill passage (June 15) or later, depending upon progress of budget negotiations.

Colorado: The Joint Budget Committee begins budget considerations in early or mid-November and introduces a budget bill several weeks before the end of the legislative session. This occurs in late March or early April. The appropriations committees and party caucuses review the budget bill for approximately two weeks.

Florida: Before the beginning of session, bills can be "pre-introduced" and committees do meet on an interim schedule. The appropriations committees hold intensive budget hearings beginning a month or two before the start of session. The 15-week timeframe for the committees includes these hearings.

Georgia: The legislature convenes on the second Monday in January; regular session is limited to 40 legislative days.

Iowa: The General Assembly has until the end of the session to consider the budget: even years–late April, odd years–early May. Technically, the fiscal committees have from the time the governor delivers the budget message until the end of session to consider the budget.

Kansas: Consideration of the "regular" appropriations bill is subject to a self-imposed schedule and varies accordingly. The budget, as a whole, typically is considered throughout the session and the wrap-up or omnibus bill is often the last or nearly the last bill to be enacted.

Louisiana: Typically, both House and Senate committees have approximately four weeks each in a regular session to consider the budget. The Legislature is limited to the length of the session.

Maine: In each first regular session (odd-numbered years), the Legislature has until mid-June. In 1997, the current services (C.S.) budget was enacted in late March. Through the early to mid-1990s, the C.S. budget was enacted in late June (or later). Also in the first regular session, the Appropriations Committee receives the current services and supplemental budgets in January. Each must be finalized by mid-May (statutory adjournment).

Michigan: The Legislature may consider the budget from the time of submission until the beginning of the fiscal year (February to October). The Appropriations/Finance Committee may consider the budget from submission in February until July 4, the traditional ending of the budget process.

Minnesota: A conference committee can and does meet until day of adjournment in odd-numbered budget years.

Mississippi: The Legislature has 16 weeks in the first year of a four-year administration to consider the budget. In the second, third and fourth years, the Legislature has 12 weeks to consider it. The fiscal committee has 15 weeks in the first year of a four-year administration and 11 weeks in the second, third and fourth years.

Missouri: The governor must submit the budget within 30 days of convening the session (Const. Article IV, Section 24). The session convenes the first Wednesday after the first Monday in January (Article III, Section 20). No appropriations bill may be considered after 6:00 p.m. on the first Friday after the first Monday in May (Article III Section 25).

Montana: Eight weeks in joint subcommittee; three weeks additional to complete in House Appropriations Committee.

New Jersey: Sixteen to 18 weeks are available, but committees typically use 10 to 12 weeks for formal deliberation.

New York: This represents the time period from the beginning of the session to the start of the fiscal year (April 1).

North Dakota: The governor submits his proposed budget to the Legislative Assembly at its two- to three-day organizational session in December in even years. The Legislative Assembly goes into session the first Tuesday in January of odd years. The 1997 session completed its work on April 11, 1997 (98 calendar days). The first house usually has until the 31st legislative day to consider the budget. The second house usually has until the 48th legislative day to consider the budget. Conference committees made up of members from both houses often work on the budget up to the last legislative day.

South Carolina: State law provides that the executive budget must be presented to the General Assembly within five days after the beginning of each regular session, which begins the second Tuesday in January.

Tennessee: There is no limit. Usually 12 weeks in even years, and 16 weeks in odd years from legislative receipt of the budget to passage.

Texas: The regular session is limited to 140 calendar days, beginning the second Tuesday in January of odd-numbered years. The fiscal year begins on September 1. If the budget is not adopted in regular session, the governor calls a special session (30-day limit). The committees have no specific limit, but the House and Senate usually have passed their bills by the 15th week (105 days) to allow four or five weeks for the work of the conference committee and final passage of the general appropriations bill.

Virginia: The governor must pre-file the budget bill by December 20 of each year. In even-numbered years, the session runs 60 days. In odd years, it runs 30 days. The legislature has from December 20 until adjournment sine die to consider the budget.

Washington: There are limits on the regular session length---the budget must be adopted 30 days before the fiscal period.

Wisconsin: The Legislature has until June 30 or upon passage of the budget.

Wyoming: Hearings are held in one-week sessions. Usually one is held in December and one in January. Then, the committee finalizes the budget in a week to 10 days at the end of January.

Northern Mariana Islands: Under P.L. 3-68, the governor must submit a balanced budget to the Legislature no later than six months before the beginning of the new fiscal year. The Legislature is required to take final action on the proposed budget no later than 30 days before the beginning of the new fiscal year.

The publication to which this table belongs, Legislative Budget Procedures: A Guide to Appropriations and Budget Processes in the States, Commonwealths and Territories, is available wholly and solely online.
Posted March 1999, reviewed December 2003.
Email statebudget-info@ncsl.org for more information.
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