Just two days into the legislative session and lawmakers are already grappling with just how ugly the state budget numbers look.
A preliminary update during a GOP caucus meeting on the pain looming in the weeks to come was given by House budget chairman Rep. Ron Bigelow, R-West Valley, who said grimly, "Even the hot spots, we can't come close."
Those "hot spots" are demands for new dollars — demands that cannot be easily shirked. They don't represent new growth, new programs or a new infusion of dollars to make life better for people out there. They are dollars to keep pace.
They include:
$21 million to the state retirement fund as part of the state's "employer" contribution to pensioners. The money, to keep the fund actuarily sound, helps mitigate a billion-dollar loss last year to the fund because of the downturn in markets.
$25.7 million to pay for increased costs in health and dental insurance benefits for state employees.
$29.3 million to health and human services for increases in Medicaid enrollment and base services to the disabled, elderly and children.
$6 million to pay for enrollment growth in higher education.
$12.3 million for public education.
Those hot spots add up to $94.3 million in new demands being thrown at legislators who, so far, have just $24 million in projected revenue growth to work with.
"This $24 million won't go very far," Bigelow warned GOP lawmakers, adding that they won't find out the latest revenue projections until mid-February.
He also stressed that the budget bailouts implemented for 2003 relied on the use of a lot of one-time money that is now propping up ongoing programs.
That money — $72 million — will have to come from somewhere again. And that's even after budgets were slashed by $66 million.
"I am thinking something has to give," Rep. Kory Holdaway, R-Taylorsville, said.
Bigelow told the group that the leaders of budget appropriation committees were given budgets for their 2004 spending plans based on the last round of cuts.
That means agencies — and the state — are already operating from a position of being dramatically down in terms of how the money is being spent.
"It gets tighter and tighter," one lawmaker groaned.
And on Friday, members of the budget committee handling corrections, public safety and courts will meet to discuss Gov. Mike Leavitt's veto of $7.8 million in cuts lawmakers made to those budgets.
Legislators will have to find that money elsewhere or build enough consensus to override Leavitt's decision.
Rep. David Hogue, R-River-ton, said they will have to make a decision that morning to forward to the Executive Appropriations Committee.
Democrats, too, were briefed on the dismal budget picture, but Sen. Ron Allen, D-Stansbury Park, said the party was adamant about protecting public and higher education from any more reductions.
"No doubt the situation is very serious," he said. "We don't have a lot of places to get money, and we don't believe you can tax your way out of a recession."
Allen, the minority whip, said lawmakers need to examine how much tobacco money can be spent and resist paying cash for buildings when bonding can be done.
E-mail: amyjoi@desnews.com