South Dakota Legislature Adopts 2010 Budget Stimulus money allowed restoration of programs
By Joe Sneve and Brittany Westerberg Community News Service PIERRE - A split S.D. State Legislature reinstated many of the governor’s proposed budget cuts and became the first legislative body in the nation to adopt a budget that used the stimulus dollars provided by the federal government.On March 13, the House of Representatives approved the budget, 42-28, and the Senate concurred, 25-10. Gov. M. Michael Rounds has until March 30 to sign or veto the general bill.
The 2010 fiscal year begins July 1, 2009. The total price tag came to $3.9 billion - an increase of $300 million over what Rounds had proposed in January.
Although some legislators were apprehensive about accepting some of the stimulus money, turning away the dollars would be detrimental to the state, said Rep. Bob Faehn, R-Watertown.
“It would be irresponsible for us to not take this money,” Faehn said. “Most of the money will go directly to schools and local government, and it allows us to take more time to repair our structural deficit.”The Legislature ended up using $88 million of stimulus dollars to balance the state’s budget.
Over $44 million of that stimulus money helped to fill in budget gaps within the Department of Education, the Board of Regents and the Department of Corrections.
Having the stimulus money available made it possible for the state lawmakers to restore programs that Rounds proposed eliminating. The programs include the funding for increasing and decreasing enrollment in schools ($5,326,683), Birth to Three, which helps families of children with developmental disabilities ($1,850,099) and the S.D. School for the Deaf ($2 million).
The state fair, which in recent years has been given $750,000 from the general fund, will receive $400,000. The legislators restored 80 percent of the Cooperative Extension Program funding, setting it at $800,000. The autism program saw a restoration in funding of $125,000. Funding for the implementation of a master’s of social work degree program at the University of South Dakota was also added at a cost of $237,251.
Some of the programs had to be restored using general fund dollars in order to meet the requirements of the stimulus package.
“Maintenance of effort must be kept,” Jason Dilges with the Bureau of Finance and Management said to the Joint Appropriations Committee March 12, one of three days the committee met to consider more than 100 amendments.Some programs and departments will still see moderate cuts totaling $38.4 million. Alternative education programs and salary increases for state employees were two such areas that were not restored.
“We could not do everything,” Rep. Larry Tidemann, R-Brookings, chairman of the Joint Appropriations Committee, said. “It’s important to know we still face the structural deficit of over $88 million in 2010, but we have time on our side to help us.”
The governor’s office took a 2 percent hit in funding for the 2010 fiscal year, saving the state $100,000 in general funds.
Rep. Thomas Deadrick, R-Platte, said cutting the governor’s budget a bit would only be proper, as he had urged the Legislature to make cuts in many other places.
“(The decrease) shows that governor is willing to take cuts as well,” he said.
State health care providers for the elderly and disabled didn’t see any cuts in funding, but to the dismay of many Democrats and some Republicans, Medicaid provider funding didn’t increase either. Sen. Dan Ahlers, D-Dell Rapids, said it was a disservice to the neediest people in South Dakota not to at least increase health care provider funding by a little bit.
“We have not done enough,” he said. “(In this budget) the money is not there to provide for the necessary number of employees to get the care that these people deserve in South Dakota.”
Ahlers said services from these providers are already stretched too thin, and without increased funding it is only going to get worse. “You can only stretch a rubber band so far before it breaks,” he said.
House Minority Leader Bernie Hunhoff, D-Yankton, agreed.
“There are a lot of good things in this budget, but we’re leaving many people behind,” he said.Deciding where to cut, where to increase and what to leave steady is always difficult, said Sen. Dave Knudson, R-Sioux Falls. Because the Legislature saved approximately $65 million for the 2011 budget, those providers will see an increase in funding next year, he said.
“This budget recognizes that South Dakota is in a tough place,” he said. “South Dakota does what it can with the resources it has.”
