Dateline January 12, 2012 - General fund revenue collections for December totaled $2.27 billion, which is $141.5 million below estimate for the month and $486.8 million below projections for the midway point of the 2011-2012 fiscal year.

During his mid-year budget briefing on January 4, 2012, Governor Corbett announced that the Budget Office will freeze $160 million in state spending to help offset the projected deficit and maintain a balanced budget. According to multiple media sources, Corbett spokesman Kevin Harley said other austerity initiatives “will be forthcoming” from the administration but declined to elaborate.

NAMI Southwestern PA will continue to monitor and respond to “cost savings initiatives” and other measures which may negatively impact availability and quality of treatments and supports necessary to people of all ages living with a mental illness.

A list of funds placed into budgetary reserve is available at the Office of the Budget website. Click on "Current and Proposed Commonwealth Budgets" in the left column.

Gov. Corbett will give his proposed 2012-13 Budget Address on February 7th. NAMI Southwestern PA will then prepare budget advocacy talking points and related budget analysis as merited.

We have conveyed our appreciation to Governor Corbett for protecting funding for behavioral health services to the extent possible in his budget proposal given his pledge of no new taxes. However, the House Republican budget proposal (HB 1485) does not adequately protect this funding. Instead it cuts $470 million from the Department of Public Welfare (DPW) budget to restore a portion of the Governor's proposed cuts to basic and higher education. The full House is scheduled to vote on the budget proposal the week of May 22nd. The Human Services Development Fund (HSDF) was 85 percent restored. While the majority of line items remain at the same appropriation level as the governor's proposal, there were several appropriations that sustained significant cuts: Behavioral Health Services Initiative or BHSI ($4.312 million or 8.26 percent), Autism ($2.475 million or 20.26 percent), and Medical Assistance Transportation Program or MATP ($9.673 million or 12.97 percent).The appropriation for Department of Health Assistance to Drug and Alcohol Programs in the Bureau of Drug and Alcohol Programs (BDAP) was cut by $1 million in treatment to fund the new Department of Drug and Alcohol.

This plan cuts health and human services for women, children and vulnerable Pennsylvanians. Medical Assistance enrollment could be reduced by nearly 100,000, while funding will be slashed for child care, domestic violence assistance, literacy, nurse-family partnerships and scores of other vital services. At the same time, this plan preserves business tax cuts and loopholes, fails to enact a natural gas drilling tax, and leaves a $500 million revenue surplus on the sidelines. You can view a full analysis of the House Republican budget plan from the Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center.

Talking Points House Budget Proposal
Proposed Cuts

As a result of Congress passing a smaller than originally anticipated enhanced federal Medicaid match percentage (FMAP) extension (25% less), Gov. Rendell is now seeking $198 million in cuts to fill the $282 million state budget gap. The Governor’s proposal has a direct 1.9 percent across-the-board reduction in spending. This includes a $50 million cut to the basic education subsidy and a cut of $57.9 million to the Department of Public Welfare (of that $38.3 million is county/local program funding). There have been no details regarding program specific cuts within Departments. Although the Governor has indicated he will work with legislative leaders to fill the budget deficit he does have the sole authority to modify the budget as he sees fit should he choose to do so.

The Senate voted 61-38 Wednesday on a procedural "cloture vote" braking up the Republican led filibuster and moving ahead with the vote to Extend the Medicaid Funding Increase via the MEDICAID AND EDUCATION JOBS AMENDMENT to HR 1586. This sets the stage for passage of the legislation before the Senate's summer break at the end of this week.

Reportedly House Democratic leaders are conferring on logistics for if and when they will summon members back to DC from their August recess to vote on legislation intended to save approximately 100,000 teaching jobs nationwide and help states with their Medicaid expenses through extending the enhanced federal match rate (FMAP).

The $26.1 billion amendment dedicates $10 million to education intending to avoid teacher lay offs and $16.1 for Medicaid (FMAP), less $8 billion than the original proposal. Those decreased numbers amount to an anticipated $600 million for PA (about 25% less than originally expected) leaving the Governor and legislative leaders looking to fill a $213 million hole in the approved spending plan for FY 2010/11. With the federal increase in education payments to the states PA legislative leaders are reporting some of the funding gap may be filled by decreases in the state's share of education costs.

The House of Representatives approved the $28.05 B budget plan at 6:00 PM on Wednesday by a vote of 117-84 marking the first on-time budget negotiated during the tenure of Governor Rendell. The Governor indicates he will not put pen to paper to approve the spending package until the General Assembly completes the necessary related budget bills that actually authorize the implementation of the budget. Some sticking points must be worked out within the fiscal code however the tying up of these loose ends could happen later today or tomorrow.

For those of you interested in digging deep into the specific line item numbers open the link for complete budget spreadsheet of the House Appropriations Committee. Line items specific to DPW begin on page 23 and run through page 28. House Appropriations Spreadsheet

The state Senate voted 37-13 to send the $28.05 billion budget bill to the state House, and as noted within an earlier email the passage within the House is not a "slam dunk". More to come as the House considers the Appropriations package.

As many organizations and media have been reporting the state legislative leaders have apparently reached a verbal agreement on a $28.05 billion budget for the 2010-11 fiscal year that starts Thursday. Reportedly the budget plan includes a $250 million increase in the basic education funding for K-12th grade. Funding levels for line items relevant to human services are unknown at this time. What we are hearing is that the budget deal funds the  SSP at $148.45 million, down by $5.8 million from last year and down from the Governor's original proposal for FY 2010-11.

The Coalition to Restore the SSP (of which NAMI Southwestern Pennsylvania is a member) urges Gov. Rendell and legislative leaders to restore cuts in State Supplemental Payments (SSP) for 345,000 residents of the commonwealth, representing very low income seniors and severely impaired members of the disability community including 67,000 children.

For those wanting more background information a one-page summary with talking points is attached.

2010-11 Governor's Executive Budget
2010-11 Budget In Brief
2010-11 Budget Address 
DPW line items

HB 1416 is now positioned to head to a conference committee – with little agreement between Gov. Rendell, the Democrat majority House and Republican controlled Senate regarding the total amount of expenditures to be allocated in the 2009-10 budget. 150 House members, including 48 House Republicans, voted to non-concur in the Senate’s amendments, thus, not sending the bill on to the governor’s desk. A conference committee comprised of yet to be named House and Sensate leadership will begin to wrangle over differences and ultimately come up with a compromise budget bill to send to the Governor's desk.

Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R-Delaware, said, following the Senate’s 31-19 approval of the amended bill, that if House Democratic leaders allowed the bill to come up for a vote on the House floor, it would “generate a lot of support and very likely get the majority of the House members’ votes.” This Senate amended version does not replace the lost IGT amount and funds Behavioral Health Services Initiative at $42.594 million.

HB 1416 sets the overall state General Fund spending level at $27 billion, but includes a proposal to move the Higher Education Fund outside of the General Fund. This move would require $1.3 billion to be funded through new revenues to be determined later in this process. The House amended HB 1416 restores all of the Senate proposed cuts to MH funding including Behavioral Health Services Initiative (BHSI) funding at a level of $56.126 million, replacing discontinued federal Intergovernmental Transfer (IGT) funds.

The House Appropriations Committee voted SB 850 (the Senate Republican budget proposal) and an amended HB 1416 (Governor's proposed budget) out of Committee yesterday. House Appropriations Committee Comparison of Budget Bills (June 14, 2009)

Governor Rendell announces an additional $500 million of funding cuts to his proposed FY 2009/10 budget. A PDF spreadsheet itemizing these newly proposed cuts can be found on a link below. Governor Rendell's proposed additional budget cuts of June 26, 09>

Comparison of Govenor's Proposed 2009-10 Budget with Senate's Budget proposal (SB 850)

State Senate's Budget Proposal (SB 850)

2009-2010 Govenor's Executive Budget In Brief

2009-10 Executive Budget, Smart Pharmacy Proposal

"Letters to the editor" submission in the Philadelphia Inquirer written by Jim Jordan, executive director, NAMI PA.

2009-10 Executive Budget, Expanding PA's adultBasic Program

Glossary of Budget Terms