Legislative Role in Cutting the Enacted Budget

Legislative Budget Procedures: Post-Enactment Budget Revisions and Supplemental Appropriations

Legislative Budget Procedures Executive Summary

Legislative Role in Cutting the Enacted Budget

State or Other Jurisdiction	Legislative Role	Authority
Alabama	Full Legislature's approval required for other than across-the-board reductions.	N/R
Alaska	In a special session or the next regular session, the Legislature can amend any or all appropriations bills.	Constitutional: general appropriations power
Arizona	The Legislature may make budget reductions by amending the general appropriations bill.	N/ A
Arkansas	The legislature biennially determines the share of any budget cuts that an agency must absorb in the event of a deficit.	Statutory: 19-5-401 et. seq.
California	The Legislature cannot require full expenditure of appropriated funds but may reduce budget authority by subsequent statutory amendment to the budget.	Appropriations power
Colorado	May enact negative supplemental bills.	Constitutional: Article X, Sec. 16 Traditional: Midyear reviews may result in reductions
Connecticut	Legislative approval is needed where total appropriated amount must be reduced by more than 5 percent.*	Statutory: Sec. 4-85 (b)
Delaware	Reduce budget authority by amendment to budget.	N/ A
Florida	General revenue deficits greater than $300 million must be resolved by Legislature.	Statutory: Sec. 216.221
Georgia	Legislature must amend the appropriations bill.	N/ A
Hawaii	None.	N/ A
Idaho	In a special session or the next regular session, the Legislature can amend any or all appropriations bills.	N/ A
Illinois	None.	N/ A
Indiana	The State Budget Committee monitors the state fiscal condition and has advisory control over certain capital projects.	Constitutional: Article 10, Sec. 3
Iowa	Full legislature's approval is required for other than across-the-board reductions. The legislature would have to enact legislation to reduce selected appropriations.	Statutory: Chap. 8 on original budget
Kansas	By appropriations act.	Constitutional: Article 2, Sec. 24
Kentucky	Varies.*	Statutory: 48.130
Louisiana	Full Legislature's approval is needed if reduction for any budgetary unit exceeds 10 percent.	Statutory: 39:75
Maine	Approval of the House and Senate.	Constitutional: Cite not provided
Maryland	No procedures are in place, but it may be constitutionally permissible for the legislature to cut the budget in a special session.	Constitutional: Article III, Sec. 52
Massachusetts	Legislative approval for gubernatorial cut.	Statutory: Chap. 29 Sec. 9-c
Michigan	Approval of the House and Senate appropriations committees is required when done by executive order per constitution. The Legislature also has cut the enacted budget by using negative appropriations bills midway through the fiscal year. This requires full legislative consideration.	Constitutional: Article V, Sec. 20 Statutory: 18.1391-18.1392, Michigan Compiled Laws
Minnesota	Executive consults with Legislature in the case of a budget shortfall.	Statutory: MS 16A.152 Subd. 4
Mississippi	None.	N/ A
Missouri	None.	Constitutional: Article III, Sec. 36
Montana	Full Legislature's approval is needed for any reductions in appropriations. Governor may order most state agencies to reduce expenditures when certain statutorily defined conditions are met.	Constitutional: Article 8, Sec. 14
Nebraska	The Legislature can reduce the appropriation to an agency by amending the appropriation during a regular or special session.	Constitutional: Article III, Sec. 22 and 25
Nevada	Full legislative or Interim Finance Committee approval is required.	Statutory: NRS 353.225 Appropriations Act
New Hampshire	Binding by the Legislative Fiscal Committee.	Statutory: RSA 9:16-a*
New Jersey	The Legislature may reduce one or more items of appropriation through the enactment of a law. The Legislature may not unilaterally enjoin spending.	Constitutional: Article VIII, Sec. 2 Para. 2
New Mexico	Appropriations may be reduced only by an act of the Legislature.	Constitutional: Article IV, Sec. 1, 2, 5
New York	The Legislature enacts a new appropriations act, but only in response to the governor's initiative to cut the enacted budget.	Constitutional: Article VII, Sec. 4
North Carolina	Full Legislature's approval is required for all appropriations bill changes other than the governor's across-the-board reductions and his other constitutional powers.	Constitutional: Article II, Sec. 22
North Dakota	The executive branch can cut across the board without consulting the legislature except when the budget reduction is the direct result of an initiative or referendum action.	Statutory: 54-44.1-12 and 54-44.1-13
Ohio	None.	N/ A
Oklahoma	Full Legislature's approval is required for other than across-the-board reductions.	Constitutional: Article 10, Sec. 23 Statutory: Title 62, Sec 41.1 et seq.
Oregon	Approval of the legislative emergency board is required for reductions other than those necessary to 1) respond to an under-realization of revenues or 2) achieve savings.	Statutory: 291-254
Pennsylvania	Not delineated.*	N/ A
Rhode Island	The speaker of the House, Senate majority leader and chairs of the House and Senate finance committees must be notified before any cuts are made.	Statutory: RIGL 35-3-16
South Carolina	The executive-legislative Budget and Control Board is responsible for avoiding year-end deficits and must inform the legislature.	Statutory: Appropriations bill
South Dakota	None.	N/ A
Tennessee	The legislature may call a special session or amend the current year's appropriation act in the following session.	N/ A
Texas	During legislative sessions, a bill may be passed to cut budgets. If the bill is not vetoed, the cuts are imposed. During the interim, the Legislative Budget Board may impose cuts that, in most instances, require the governor's approval.	Constitutional: Article 16, Sec. 69 Statutory: Chap. 317, Government Code
Utah	Legislative approval is needed for budget reductions.*	Statutory: 63-38-10, 63-38-11
Vermont	Binding by full legislature.*	Constitutional: Article 5, Chap. II, Sec. 27
Virginia	The legislature may reduce appropriations only by enacting an amended budget.	N/ A
Washington	The Legislature must pass a bill to cut the budget and must approve any gubernatorial cut other than an across-the-board reduction	Constitutional: Article 8, Sec. 4
West Virginia	None.	N/ A
Wisconsin	If estimated expenditures are expected to exceed available revenues by more than 0.5 percent of total general fund appropriations, the governor is required to submit a bill to the Legislature to correct the imbalance.	Statutory: Sec. 16.50 (7)
Wyoming	None.	N/ A
American Samoa	--	--
D.C.	--	--
Guam	Full Legislature's approval is needed to amend, repeal or reenact an appropriations act.	N/R
Northern Mariana Islands	None.	N/ A
Puerto Rico	The legislature passes a bill to cut the budget.	N/R
U.S. Virgin Islands	--	--

Source: National Conference of State Legislatures, December 1997.

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

*Notes:

Connecticut--If it is necessary to reduce the total appropriated by more than 5 percent, General Assembly approval is required. If a fund must be reduced by more than 3 percent or an appropriation account must be reduced by more than 5 percent, Finance Advisory Committee approval is required (Connecticut Statutes, Sec. 4-85 (b)).

Kentucky--If the revenues are up to 5 percent below official estimates, an enacted reduction plan is implemented. The law does not address shortfalls of more than 5 percent.

New Hampshire--Statutory or by the enactment of an amendment to the act by the General Court.

Pennsylvania--Budget Reform Code requires a balanced budget. The only way a deficit could occur is if revenues do not reach earlier estimates. Because of the balanced budget requirement, there is no requirement for what the governor and/ or legislature must do should a deficit situation occur (governor has line-item veto).

Utah--The governor may not cut budgeted appropriations without legislative approval. If total revenues accruing to a fund are not sufficient to cover the appropriations made for that period, however, the governor may reduce allotments to agencies by the amount of the deficiency or alter agency workplans to slow spending.

Vermont--However, the governor may control the rate of expenditures by state agencies through allotment powers. In so doing, the governor may reduce an allotment if he or she determines that a lesser amount than was appropriated is required. However, the governor has no statutory authority to reduce appropriations unilaterally in order to balance the budget.

Published March 1998; posted January 2004.
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.
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