This year, they are not reacting to proposals by their Republican colleagues. They are not waiting. Instead, Democrats on Utah's Capitol Hill have prepared what they call a "common sense" budget to beef up education.
At a packed press conference Thursday, House Minority Leader Dave Jones, D-Salt Lake, announced a plan that would give more money to education than Gov. Mike Leavitt proposed in both public and higher education. Democrats have figured everything to the penny, Jones said, and they know how to pay for it.
"We are here to talk about our vision," Jones said, "and how we propose to make a down payment on that vision."
The state has waited too long for a financial infusion into education, Jones said. The Republican-controlled Legislature has downplayed Utah's consistent position at the bottom of the education funding list until recently, when Utah students started to dip below average performance standards.
"When we dip below, everybody gets nervous. Everybody gets excited," Jones said. "When did we decide as a state that average was good enough for our kids?"
The democratic budget plan identifies four areas from which to draw the nearly $298 million expenditures in the proposal.
Jones called it "political fiction" to pay back bonds for transportation projects so fast when the state is in dire financial straits.
Instead, $46 million should come from the Centennial Highway Fund, and construction of the Legacy Highway should be moved to a "more realistic time frame" after 2007. And two years should be added to the Centennial Highway payment plan.
Since the Centennial Highway Fund was created in 1997, $1.6 billion has been "diverted" toward the fund, Jones said. "We think that's too much. It beggars education, and it needs to be addressed."
Another $60 million would come from Rep. Patrice Arent's HB117, a textbook bill that would fortify public schools and colleges with books, supplies and instructional materials.
About $25 million accumulating in a capital facilities fund should go toward the education effort now, and Democrats said they see no problem borrowing money for building projects.
Finally, a $35 million surplus in revenues collected from the inheritance tax should go toward education, according to the plan.
"This is a common sense budget that gets directly to the heart of what every Utah resident wants," said Senate Minority Leader Scott Howell, D-Granite.
But GOP leadership blasted the Democratic budget as fantasy. "When you don't have to deal with reality, you can say anything you want," said Senate President Lane Beattie, R-West Bountiful.
Speaker of the House Marty Stephens, R-Farr West, criticized Democrats for how they went about preparing the budget. "I feel bad they would get together in a closed meeting and put together this budget without public input," he said.
GOP leaders said the only prudent approach is to wait until tax revenue estimates are available later this month and then conduct public hearings in the nine appropriations committees as to how best spend the money.
"We will also have a very heavy emphasis on education," Stephens predicted.
Howell anticipated the comments in the earlier press conference. "This is a budget that can be adopted," he said.
The state's stellar Triple A bond rating can be maintained and all expenses met. "If they want to adopt it and take credit for it in an election year, then that's fine."
Deseret News reporter Jerry Spangler contributed to this report.